Retail Week

Retail Week
Name	Retail Week
Type	Business-to-business magazine
Owner	TPG Capital
Founded	1988
Headquarters	London
Language	English

Retail Week is a British trade publication covering the retail sector, including news, analysis, data and events for senior executives at supermarkets, department stores and online merchants. The title reports on mergers and acquisitions, store openings, supply-chain arrangements and leadership changes affecting firms such as Tesco, Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis Partnership, Next plc and Amazon. It is read by executives at corporations including ASDA, Morrisons, Iceland Foods, Dunelm Group, Sports Direct International, JD Sports Fashion, The Fragrance Shop, Ocado Group, Waitrose & Partners and Boots UK.

History

The publication was founded in 1988 amid consolidation in the UK retail market involving groups like Sainsbury's and Tesco, and it emerged contemporaneously with trade titles covering sectors addressed by The Grocer, Drapers and The Grocer's competitors. Early coverage intersected with events such as the expansion of Marks & Spencer into food, the rise of IKEA in the UK, and the late-20th-century growth of Argos. Across the 1990s and 2000s the title reported on strategic moves by companies including Walmart's acquisition of ASDA, the flotation of Next plc and the internationalisation of Tesco PLC. During the 2010s it covered digital disruption by Amazon, platform strategies from eBay, and logistics investments by DHL, DPDgroup and Royal Mail. Key moments in its chronology paralleled boardroom contests at Marks & Spencer, takeover approaches involving Kingfisher and regulatory interventions by authorities such as Competition and Markets Authority.

Products and Services

The title provides a print magazine, subscription-based data products, bespoke research, and consultancy services used by retailers, suppliers and investors. Data and benchmarking tools draw on metrics familiar to analysts of Sainsbury's, Tesco, Aldi, Lidl, Iceland Foods and Co-op Food. Its intelligence offerings include store-footfall analysis that complements research by firms such as Kantar Group and Nielsen Holdings. Corporate subscribers from Marks & Spencer, John Lewis Partnership and Next plc use proprietary dashboards alongside reports on omnichannel strategies pursued by asos plc, Boohoo Group, Zalando SE and Farfetch. The editorial team collaborates with consultancies including McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, Accenture and PwC for white papers and commissioned studies.

Events and Awards

The publisher organises conferences, roundtables and awards ceremonies attracting executives from Harrods, Selfridges, House of Fraser, Debenhams (historical), Boots UK, Superdrug, Ocado Group and mainstream investors such as BlackRock, Legal & General, Schroders and HBSC. Events have featured keynote speakers from Tesco, Sainsbury's, John Lewis Partnership, Amazon and Alibaba Group. Award categories often align with initiatives promoted by organisations including British Retail Consortium and regulatory topics referenced by Competition and Markets Authority. Summits attract logistics leaders from Royal Mail, DPDgroup, Yodel, and payment executives from Visa Inc., Mastercard, Worldpay and PayPal Holdings, Inc..

Digital Presence and Publications

The publisher maintains a website with news, subscriber-only analysis, and data briefings used by analysts at Kantar Group, Nielsen Holdings, IBISWorld and Euromonitor International. Its digital editorial portfolio covers technology innovation from vendors such as SAP SE, Oracle Corporation, Salesforce, IBM and Microsoft Corporation; ecommerce platforms from Shopify and marketplaces like Amazon and eBay; and payments from Stripe and Adyen. It produces newsletters read by teams at Tesco, Sainsbury's and Marks & Spencer and collaborates for webinars with firms such as Google, Meta and Microsoft Corporation on topics including digital marketing, customer data and cloud computing.

Influence and Industry Impact

The title influences corporate decision-making at retailers, suppliers and investors by breaking stories on leadership changes, financial results and strategic pivots involving companies like Tesco, Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis Partnership and Next plc. Its analysis is cited by trade bodies including British Retail Consortium and referenced in reporting by national outlets such as The Financial Times, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The Times, BBC News and Sky News. Coverage shapes debate on topics also discussed in forums hosted by City AM, The Times conferences and trade events run by Reed Exhibitions and Informa plc.

Corporate Structure and Ownership

The publisher has undergone ownership changes reflecting consolidation in business media, with transactions involving investment firms and media groups similar to deals by Trinity Mirror (now Reach plc), Future plc, Haymarket Media Group and Ascential plc. Its corporate governance includes editorial leadership, commercial teams selling sponsorships to BlackRock, KPMG, Deloitte, PwC and EY (Ernst & Young), and data teams maintaining relationships with vendors such as SAP SE and Oracle Corporation. The business interacts with regulatory bodies including Competition and Markets Authority when reporting on market-sensitive matters.

Category:Business magazines published in the United Kingdom