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PRShots Roundup brings you the latest retail news from Aldi, Shoe Zone, Poundland, Oniverse, Club L, George at Asda, Gymshark, Little Mistress and Primark. Plus, how retail is embracing automation to cut staff costs, 30 AI marketing tools to drive growth in 2025 and more.  

THE LATEST RETAIL INDUSTRY NEWS

Aldi outpaces rivals with highest hourly pay rate for supermarket workers

Aldi has announced a pay increase for its store assistants, raising hourly rates to at least £12.71 nationally and £14.00 within the M25, making it the best-paying supermarket in the UK.

Shoe Zone profits slide

Shoe Zone FY24 to Sept 28 show revenue slipped by 2.7% to £161.3m and posted a pre-tax profit of £10.1m, compared to £16.2m the previous year.

Battersea Power Station finishes record year with 'strong' Christmas trading

Festive sales at Battersea Power Station increased 13.4% in November and December as the riverside neighbourhood celebrated its best Christmas to date.

Poundland owner weighs changes as it calls in advisers

Poundland owner Pepco group has called in advisers AlixPartners to address the ongoing sales decline, with sources saying it could be looking into a sale or restructuring of Poundland.

Consumer confidence stalled in Q4

The Deloitte Consumer Tracker shows consumer confidence remained virtually unchanged in Q4 2024, with a marginal -0.2 point drop, the first time confidence has stalled since 2022.

Oniverse (formerly Calzedonia) Targets La Perla to Strengthen Brand Portfolio

Oniverse, formerly known as Calzedonia is believed to be interested in acquiring lingerie brand La Perla and is already believed to be in key meetings.

TRENDS, SUSTAINABILITY, STRATEGY AND TECHNOLOGY

How retail is embracing automation to cut staff costs

From electronic shelf labels, robot bag packers to more self-service checkouts, automation is coming to your local supermarket.

30 AI marketing tools to drive growth in 2025

Looking for some robot assistance? Hootsuites top 30 AI marketing tools can make social media management (and marketing in general!) so much easier.

Inside Asos, New Look and Urban Decay’s social strategies

Digital marketing has new rules, so Retail week talks to three top retailers to find out how they are coping with and working with the changes.

What do conversational assistants mean for brands?

Conversational assistants powered by generative AI are increasingly prevalent. How should brands approach the opportunities – and challenges – they present?

How to future-proof your marketing

Learn 2025’s key metrics, trends, and strategies to future-proof your business and boost performance by up to 50%.

PEOPLE, MOVERS AND SHAKERS

Club L London names marketing chief

Womenswear brand Club L London has promoted digital and trading director Dan Lorenson to the role of chief marketing officer.

BRAND NEWS

Primark unveils new adaptive clothing collection

Primark has unveiled its new adaptive clothing collection that has been created in partnership with adaptive fashion designer and disability advocate, Victoria Jenkins.

George at Asda reveals Maisie Smith as face of new G21 collection

George at Asda has unveiled British actress Maisie Smith as the face of its new G21 collection, landing in stores nationwide on 23 January.

Gymshark’s new modest collection with influencer Leana Deeb

Gymshark has launched a new modest activewear range with Muslim fitness content creator and YouTube, TikTok and Instagram star Leana Deeb.

Little Mistress opens showroom

Womenswear brand Little Mistress has opened a 2,500 sq ft showroom and creative hub on central London's Great Portland Street.

Fluorescent PR go into administration

Fatface have moved their pr in-house after their agency Fluorescent PR went into administration. Contact  Fatface via Nahida (Nahida.Tasnim@fatface.com) or Carly (Carly.Jones@fatface.com).

AND FINALLY

Jacquemus FW25 campaign shot on iPhone

For Jacquemus' next trick, the luxury brand will present its forthcoming Fall/Winter 2025 runway show, shot on an iPhone.

The 'Mob husband' aesthetic takes over Milan Men’s Fashion Week

The ‘mob wife’ aesthetic took over TikTok last year, as Gen Z and millennial women sported vintage or faux-fur coats, gaudy jewellery and large, dark glasses. It’s now reached menswear.

PRSHOTS TOP 10 SEARCHES

What were our users searching for on PRShots Week ending January 17^th 2025?

1/ SS25

2/ Valentine

3/ Leopard

4/ Brown

5/ Easter

6/ Bed

7/ Dress

8/ Living Room

9/ Kitchen  

10/ Bedroom

HELP WITH YOUR IMAGE SEARCHES

The latest images on PRShots are found here https://www.prshots.com/whatsnew why not bookmark the page for a regular feed of the latest images on PRShots!! You can select the latest images from the last 24 hours, week, or month.

BRANDS WITH NEW IMAGES

Clothing, beauty and accessories

Peacocks has new Louise Redknapp SS25 range and SS25 clothing, jumpers and fashions, a new Caprice SS25 lingerie range just in time for Valentine’s Day and a Michael Owen SS25 Edit.

Oliver Bonas has new February, March and April 2025 uploads of jewellery, women’s clothing, bags, shoes and accessories as well as new ranges for SS25.

Primark has new NFL clothing ranges, Hello Kitty kids clothing and accessories, swimwear for the beach, a new Youth range, new bags, lingerie and nightwear for Valentines, new SS25 dresses and skirts, Performance 2025 ranges of athleisure clothes, shoes and bags.

Monsoon has new Jan-Feb campaigns for women and kids, new wedding outfit shoes and dresses and  SS25 womenswear ranges including holiday and beachwear, plus .

TK Maxx has new Valentine’s themed clothing and jewellery, plus new clothing, shoes, boots, jewellery, makeup and accessories for SS25.

Matalan has new NFL clothing ranges, Valentine pyjamas, athleisure wear, a new transitional style edit, a menswear collaboration with Taylor & Wright, transitional ranges and a menopause lingerie range.

M&S has new SS25 clothing, plus Valentine’s Day lingerie, a Goodmove collection of outdoor sports and athleisure wear modelled by Olympian Alex Scott.

Deichmann has new shoes for SS25

River Island has new lingerie for Valentine’s Day, plus Black, Brown, Blue Stripe and Butter Yellow themed ranges, a new Jo Horner collaboration, “New Year New Look” ranges, Pantone Mocha Mousse looks for spring.

Dune London has new bridal shoe ranges for casual to posh weddings, and new shoes, bags and accessories for early 2025.

Barbour has Lunar New Year clothing ranges, plus accessories for your pets, new ranges of clothing, boots and accessories for SS25 for men and women.

Fable England has new SS25 Running Bunny and Wonderland ranges of bags and scarves, plus new accessories and core jewellery ranges.

New Look has new SS25 clothing arriving in January and February and more new winter outfits, winter and occasion wear outfits for women, plus ranges of womenswear including coats, jumpers, skirts and tops.

Very has a new Michelle Keegan collaboration, new athleisure wear and V by very ranges of clothes, partywear and footwear, including metallics, sequins and faux fur.

Fatface has new SS25 jewellery, accessories and clothes for men and women.

Roman Originals has new SS25 Petite imagery, more AW24 imagery for Petite, Curve and Dusk ranges of womenswear for day wear and for big events.

Regatta has new jackets and fleeces for the outdoors and ranges of trainers, walking boots, wellies and sandals, plus kids swimming costumes and wetsuits.

Bonmarché has new SS25 outdoor clothing ranges and swimsuits, Valentines outfits, new Dash SS25 clothing ranges, jumpers and partywear and lingerie ranges.

F&F has a new Kate Ferdinand F&F Active collaboration of athleisure wear for January, new SS25 ranges of women's clothing and accessories.

George at Asda has new Gym Locker activewear ranges, plus lingerie and nightwear ranges for Valentine’s Day.

Tu Clothing has new womenswear ranges of clothes, shoes and accessories.

Sims Wear has new menswear ranges for SS25.

Frangipani has new menswear and jewellery.

Saywood has new womenswear, accessories and soft furnishings.

Dune London Mens has new shoes and trainers for early 2025.

Joe Browns has new SS25 clothing for men and women plus shoes, boots, jewellery and accessories including purses, bags and shopping baskets.

Celtic &Co has new clothing, sandals, shoes, scarves, and accessories for SS25.

Curvy Kate has new Swerve, Suspend, Suspense, Serpent, Opulence, Indulgence, Eos, Entwined, Zen, Victory, Wild One, Strawberry Crush, Ornate and more ranges of lingerie. Plus new ranges of swimwear for SS25.

Scamp & Dude has new leopard print dresses for AW24.

John Lewis has new Anyday and And/Or SS25 clothing, shoes and accessories for women and men, a Dream Dress Edit featuring Whistles, Sister Jane, Reiss, Phase Eight and more clothing ranges for women.

Lipsy has new womenswear images for the new season.

Lola Starr has new sustainable activewear for the January and February bounce back.

See additional new clothing and accessories images from

Sainsbury’s Beauty National Trust Cotton Traders

Home, garden and food

Dobbies Garden Centres has a new Heritage range of outdoor gardening items including throws and firepits, plus indoor plants and soft furnishings, Valentine’s presents, outdoor furniture, barbecues, accessories, kids' swimming pools and pots for SS25, Mother’s Day 2025 gifts.

Designers Guild has a new SS25 studio range of fabrics.

TK Maxx has new gifts for Valentine’s Day, homeware, and a new 1960s-inspired summer range of kitchenware and furniture for the office, plus new gifting ranges, a wellness range for the New Year.

Cambridge Imprint has new storage solutions including boxes, files, trays and gift card designs for SS25.

Home Bargains has new things for the garden, new home exercise accessories, Mediterranean and Travellers Bazaar ranges, homeware from SS25 for the bedroom, bathroom and living rooms plus candles, diffusers, glasses and soft furnishings.

M&S has new SS25 Boho, Classic and Exquisite Earth furniture and homeware ranges, new gifts – including a Valentine Percy Pig - and decorations for Valentine’s Day, new furniture, soft furnishings and kitchenware for SS25.

John Lewis has new Modern and Classic homeware collections of furniture, soft furnishings and accessories for SS25.

The Gluttonous Gardener has new flower ranges for the spring and summer.

Hobbycraft has Valentine’s Day and Easter decoration and food ideas. 

Jan Constantine has more Valentine’s Day-appropriate cushions.

Cutter & Squidge has new hampers and food and drink for the Lunar New Year and for Valentine’s Day.

George Home has new Lucky Charm range and Dark Garden SS25 interiors ranges, Stacey Solomon collaborations on cookware, bedding, dining, and homeware.

Primark has new gifts, soft furnishings, furniture and homeware for SS25.

Nest has some new ranges for the outdoors.

Matalan has new Easter decorations and home ranges, Valentine’s gifts, SS25 homeware images for the dining room, bedroom, bathroom and garden, new Connie the Cockapoo range.

Treats by Mars has new Snickers and Galaxy ranges. 

B&M has new Rustic Charm homeware ranges for SS25, including cushions, mirrors, vases and incense burners.

Ivyline has new plant pots, fountains and storage for the garden.

Cult Furniture has new ranges for SS25.

Online Home Shop has new storage solutions, side tables and chest of drawers, rugs, bedding, foot warmers, hot water bottles, heated pads, body wraps, plus bar stools, mirrors, cuddle cushions, shaped pillows and bolsters.

Homesense has a new Outdoor Taste of the Med and Summer in the Souk ranges of furniture, homeware and kitchenware, plus indoors furniture and homeware for SS25.

National Trust has new garden furniture ranges for SS25,  gifts for the home and the garden for SS25, plus decorations for Easter.

Quorn Stone has new Alnwick Ivory and Provenca Crema marble and tiles for the kitchen, natural stone and tumbled herringbone cobbles outdoor ranges, marble ranges for the bathroom and kitchen and Limestone cobbles for outside.

Habitat has new SS25 homeware and furniture, plus new furniture for setting up your own home office. 

Dunelm has new colour drench ranges, a new Sophie Robinson collaboration and its SS25 range of bedroom and living room furniture, soft furnishings and kitchenware.

Oliver Bonas has new furniture and home accessories including mirrors, lighting and tableware for the New Year and SS25.

See additional new home images from

Sofology Fritz Fryer  Fatface

DIARY

PRShots Retail Calendar Alerts

Days until Valentine’s Day – 24

Days until Mother’s Day - 68

Days until Easter - 89
 

How to get your brand in the media in January

January is all about fitness and health and getting back on track after a Christmas and New Year holiday break. So, clothes-wise it’s all about clothing for the gym and exercise, so make sure if you have anything relevant that it’s flagged up with keywords like fit, exercise and gym. 

The monthlies are also starting to prepare for Valentine’s Day next month, so get any relevant clothes, accessories and gifts uploaded and keyword them with valentine. They’re also looking forward to next season so make sure anything SS25 is flagged on your drops.

Plus, as we’re still mid-winter there will still be searches for anything cosy, so pyjamas, slippers, coats, hygge, winter warmers, knitwear, scarves and everything warm. 

January is also Veganuary (in 2024 over 1.8m people worldwide signed up for it! ) and it’s also Dry January so it’s a good idea to make sure you have vegan-friendly products and non-alcoholic products labelled on your media centre, plus anything that’s healthy that fits in with resetting your life. 

If you sell gin and anything gin-related then it’s also Ginuary!  It’s also Walk Your Dog Month, so anything dog-related would be good.

If you’re a PRShots brand user and you need more ideas, then take a look at the keywords that media are searching for on PRShots and try and add those in.

If you’re looking for more hooks to help promote your brand and products, then see the list of days, weeks and fortnights below.

January Diary - Weeks/Months

Cervical Cancer Prevention Week (20th Jan – 26th Jan)

The Furniture Show NEC Birmingham (19th Jan – 22nd Jan)

Diary - Days

21st – National Hugging Day (US)

25th – Burns Night

25th - Dydd Santes Dwynwen (St Dwynwen's Day)

26th – Australia Day

26th – Indian Republic Day

27th – Chocolate Cake Day (US)

27th – Holocaust Memorial Day (US)

28th – Data Privacy Day

29th – Lunar New Year / Chinese New Year (The year of the Snake)

29th – Valentine’s Day searches rise

31st – Tax return payments are due today

NB - All dates have been checked, but some events may change due to unforeseen circumstances or have not been fully confirmed for 2025 by the authorities controlling the event(s).