Consumer Products and Services

Shave Club syndrome nicks P&G makeover

2 Aug 2016

New CEO David Taylor has spruced up the $230 bln Tide-to-Pampers behemoth, but it's struggling to boost sales. Now internet-savvy upstarts like Dollar Shave Club, recently bought by Unilever, threaten to steal customers and take a razor to margins in P&G's better-looking units.

Carrefour’s edge on Tesco is no French paradox

28 Jul 2016

The Gallic retailer’s first-half revenue grew 2.9 percent, and it has better sales and profit margins than Tesco. That’s not surprising: the UK has strong price deflation and Carrefour had a head start in battling the discounters. Yet Tesco’s online nous may narrow the gap.

Mega beer merger develops case of the shakes

21 Jul 2016

An offer of 71 billion pounds that SABMiller accepted from AB InBev in November no longer looks generous - and not just because sterling has plunged. SAB’s board still has time to push for a better deal, or at least get a second opinion.

Unilever’s razor-club buy is a sharp move

20 Jul 2016

The consumer-goods giant may be paying $1 bln for Dollar Shave Club. At five times sales, that's a fair price if Unilever grows the business well. Owning a scrappy startup that has already blunted the market for pricey razors at rival Procter & Gamble's expense doubles the edge.

Ackman and Herbalife both win a Pyrrhic victory

15 Jul 2016

Pershing Square's claim that the $6.4 bln supplements seller deceived customers was justified, but the activist hedge fund lost a four-year campaign to label it a pyramid scheme. Herbalife's victory, however, comes with painful settlement costs and forced business-model changes.

Burberry finally owns up to ill-fitting C-suite

11 Jul 2016

Marco Gobbetti will succeed Christopher Bailey as the UK brand’s CEO, with the latter staying on as design chief. Investors cheered, as it could improve Burberry’s below-par sales performance. The risk is Bailey sees what looks like a demotion as a demotivation.

Kellogg’s café is millennial-friendly billboard

8 Jul 2016

The $29 bln food giant just opened a cereal outlet in Times Square. Despite the big-name restaurateurs involved, it's unlikely to challenge McDonald's for breakfast or nearby candy stores for dessert. Lazy millennials aside, it's more like a novel advertising gimmick aimed at reviving sales.

British retail sleepwalks into Amazon-ageddon

8 Jul 2016

Real-world stores are burdened with poor demand, too much property and thinning profit. The U.S. tech giant, meanwhile, is hiring 1,000 UK staff and pushing into fashion and groceries. The UK's economic problems could be a decisive moment in the online land grab.

Grizzly-proof cooler maker defies IPO bear market

7 Jul 2016

Yeti, which sells ultra-rugged ice chests endorsed by pro bass fishermen and BBQ pitmasters, could be the biggest U.S. float of 2016. Building a cooler, um, cooler – and flaunting it – is the key to its success. But copycat competitors will soon be biting at Yeti's big feet.

Yoox Net-a-Porter can dodge luxury doldrums

6 Jul 2016

Federico Marchetti snapped up rival luxury site Net-a-Porter on the cheap last year. Shares have fallen of late and the luxury sector as a whole is struggling. But with revenue at the merged group set to grow 20 percent annually, the online bit of the market looks healthier.

Sainsbury’s finds super-cheap isn’t super-cheerful

4 Jul 2016

The UK grocer will close the Netto brand of low-cost supermarkets that was meant to challenge Lidl and Aldi. Budget food retail is set to grow 40 percent over the next five years. But the bigger retailers don't necessarily need to join the discounters to beat them.

Adidas enlists House Kardashian in siege of Nike

29 Jun 2016

The German sportswear maker signed up hip-hop superstar Kanye West in a partnership just after Nike announced weak quarterly results. Adidas still lags its swoosh-logoed rival in market share and profitability. Adding Mr. Kim Kardashian to its ranks may help close the gap.

Dixons Carphone’s strong year offers weak comfort

29 Jun 2016

The British electrical goods and phone seller said like-for-like sales grew 5 percent last year. Its pro-Remain boss says leaving the EU may not be disastrous. The company does look strong relative to rivals like Darty, but the outlook for consumer spending is hugely uncertain.

Local brands lead race for China’s savvy consumers

29 Jun 2016

From shampoo to snacks, upstart Chinese companies are challenging foreign rivals, a new report shows.  They heed digital trends, adapt to local tastes and respond to customers' increasingly sophisticated demands. Western firms that don't follow their lead risk being left behind.

Ferragamo boss spells out new reality for luxury

20 Jun 2016

The Italian shoemaker’s chief says the label will focus on widening profit margins as sales become unpredictable. Cost cutting helps, but many problems in the luxury sector are self-inflicted. Rapid expansion and price hikes during the good times leave fewer options now.

Inditex makes other retailers look shabby

15 Jun 2016

The owner of Zara can be relied on for two things: keeping up with fast-changing fashion trends and delivering healthy results. Its first quarter performance is no exception, though gross margins dipped. Investors can count on it outpacing peers like H&M through the seasons.

Jimmy Choo’s best feature: unfashionable lateness

15 Jun 2016

The luxury shoemaker's shares have sagged 24 percent since its IPO, somewhat unfairly. It is on track to increase revenue by 11 percent this year, and is less affected by the Asia slowdown than bigger luxury groups. Dragging its heels in China now looks like an advantage.

Diplomacy is a luxury Asda can no longer afford

13 Jun 2016

Wal-Mart named its China chief, Sean Clarke, Asda's new CEO. This may be hard on Roger Burnley, the incoming chief operating officer who was tipped as a contender. But falling sales and ferocious price wars mean that bruised feelings are the least of the retailer's problems.

Flabby Lululemon needs founder’s exercise regimen

8 Jun 2016

Chip Wilson wants to make the $9 bln athletic-clothes maker’s board more accountable for profit slipping as revenue expands. That has left Lululemon lagging rival Under Armour. Sweating out costs would boost performance. Wilson’s robust stake makes him a formidable taskmaster.

Hermes shows scarcity is still a classic

1 Jun 2016

A Birkin handbag fetched $300,000 at auction in Hong Kong, a new world record - even though sales in the wider luxury sector are hitting the skids. The lesson for rivals is that rarity still elicits demand. That's cold comfort for luxury brands that have grown too big