Squids and Sharks everywhere....

No, we're not under water but the giant stuffed shark and squid are inside British designer Christopher Raeburn's new shop at Coal Drops Yard - the new retail destination near London's King's Cross off Granary Square. Fabulous!  The only stretch of water near here is the Regent's Canal.

One of Raeburn's signature works, apart from his being a master in recycling and repurposing materials, is featuring animal mascots in his designs and this Autumn and Winter, his current collection showcases sea creatures swirling on a sweatshirt or knitted brightly into the motif of another top.

At a time when the world is waking up to the destruction and pollution caused by plastics in our open waters, it is definitely a good way to remind ourselves of the life forms that seas provide and support.

Photos by Lucia Carpio.

Britons spend more on fashion than the French, says report

British fashion shoppers rank eighth on a list of heavy spending consumers in Europe with £1,000 spent annually on clothing and shoes on average, according to an article in Fashion Network reporting on figures obtained from EU statistics agency Eurostat.

Ranking above the UK are Estonia, Portugal, Italy, Austria, Lithuania, Latvia and Luxembourg.  

Putting UK eighth position at the top third of a list of 26 countries, the UK is also ranked much higher than French shoppers who are often regarded as more fashion-concerned.  

The French reportedly spend £600 a year but rank 23rd on the list, above only Hungary, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria.

The gap between neighbouring British and France has widened in the past decade with Britons spending 5.6% of their household budgets on fashion in 2016, which was 0.5% higher than in 2006. The French at the same time spent 3.8% of their household budgets, a fall of 0.8% over the same 10-year period.

Of course, a lot of what Britons buy goes unworn.  The article also pointed out that according to a recent survey by Weight Watchers showed that UK women and men have around £10 billion of unworn clothing in their drawers and wardrobes, or around £200 per adult.

Black Friday sales reveal online shopping behaviour and shoppers' loyalty

Analysis of over 7 million unique e-commerce transactions this Black Friday has revealed discounting falls as order amounts rise.  This is good news for retailers, as the average discount on an order decreased by 12 percent compared to last year, whilst the average order amount grew by 9 percent compared to that of 2016.

The data, from customer relationship experts Optimove, suggests that online customers in the UK were willing to spend more on more items on Black Friday 2017.  The average number of items in an order grew by 7 percent compared to last year’s sales day figures. Customers did not insist on receiving such big discounts in order to complete their transactions.

"It is clear that more shoppers are opting to buy online rather than in-store."

Pini Yakuel, founder and CEO of Optimove, comments: “As the numbers come in after Black Friday, it is clear that more shoppers are opting to buy online rather than in-store. Which is why it is more important than ever that retailers understand the behaviours and motivations of their online customers.

“Contrary to traditional analysis of the Black Friday phenomenon, our data shows that most of the individuals shopping with a brand on the day are actually returning, rather than completely new, customers.  On Black Friday last year, our research showed that 71 percent of shoppers had bought something from the brand before at some stage. And this trends continues.

"There are signs that days like Black Friday may be helping retailers to keep customers coming back to their brand." 

“This year, the share of Black Friday transactions which were made by first-time shoppers decreased by a further 18 percent. Customers’ pre-existing contact with a brand goes some way towards explaining why shoppers have been willing to buy more items without such high discounts this year.

“Despite the supposed ‘death’ of customer loyalty, driven in part by the ease of price comparison online, there are signs that days like Black Friday may be helping retailers to keep customers coming back to their brand.

"The challenge for retailers is to continue building on this relationship outside of the pre-Christmas and sales period."

“If retailers can continue to exchange value with their online customers – offering specific offers, personalised communications and experiences – then these positive trends can continue into the sparser months, January and beyond.”