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High Street recovery doubts
17.09.09
The strength of the High Street recovery was called into question today, with new official figures showing sales in August were up just 0.2% overall.
UK retail sales for the month were just 2.1% higher than a year earlier - when the economic slump was raging after the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
Earlier-reported sales growth in July was also revised down, from 0.4% to 0.2%, the Office for National Statistics said.
For August, a rise in food sales was more than offset by falls in clothing and footwear. August food sales were up 0.7%, while non-store retailing and repair sales grew 1.1%.
Alan Clarke at BNP Paribas said: "Consumer spending has been resilient, but with growth below potential, unemployment will continue to rise and that will hold back spending."
Reader views (1)
Swarovski the worlds leading manufactory of cut crystal fails to cut the ice with potential future employee's. They walk away from open day obligations. Close up shop and just walk away, leaving hundreds to turn up, only to be turned away. Swarovski a well known retailer in the UK with multiple sites and many store locations and concessions, placed an Ad in the Metro free newspaper last week on Thursday 10 September . This Ad invited people to attend an Open Day on Tuesday 15 September to meet Swarovski and have the opportunity of being interviewed for a range of positions advertised in their Ad. The Open day was being held between 12pm and 6pm at the Ramada Hyde Park Hotel. On offer were some store management positions with Swarovski and with concessions in House of Fraser and some sales consultant positions.
Swarovski CANCEELLED the event on the day of the event. All those arriving were simply turned away with no advice or help or any satisfactory explanation. One person representing Swarovski by the name of Jermaine(he confirmed he was employed by Swarovski but for some strange reason would not give out his surname?) was stood at the entrance to the Hotel gathering groups of people together as quickly as they arrived to simply announce that the Open Day event had been cancelled because it had been too successful and Swarovski were not in a position to cope with the demand.
Shame on you Swarovski. Get organised.
- David, Gillingham
