Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Waitrose named UK's favourite supermarket by Which?

Published: 19 February, 2015

Waitrose has returned to the top spot of the Which? annual supermarkets survey - narrowly ahead of last year's winner, discounter Aldi.

Majestic Wine chief Steve Lewis steps down

Published: 19 February, 2015

Majestic Wine's chief executive Steve Lewis is leaving the retailer with immediate effect, on the back of poor festive sales.

Tesco names John Allan as new chairman

Published: 18 February, 2015

Dixons Carphone deputy chairman John Allan has been appointed to lead Tesco's board of directors as Richard Broadbent departs.

Wine sales rocket 20% to €44m at Vente-Privee

Published: 16 February, 2015

Wine sales rocketed in 2014 at flash sales site Vente-Privée, which is celebrating a 20% increase in wine turnover to €44 million, as it ramps up its UK focus with the appointment of a new managing director.

Bibendum PLB says data insights vital to trading with multiples

Published: 11 February, 2015

Bibendum PLB says its "bird's eye view' of the UK market marks it out as a unique player in offering consumer behaviour data to customers in this increasingly tough multiple retailer environment.

Virgin Wines sees festive sales boost of £10m

Published: 10 February, 2015

Online wine retailer Virgin Wines saw like-for-like sales jump 20% over the festive period, accounting for an extra £10 million - driven by a stellar performance from fizz.

French bag-in-box only retailer BiBoViNo seeks UK franchisees

Published: 10 February, 2015

French bag-in-box only wine retailer BiBoViNo is actively seeking UK franchisees to expand its 10-strong estate internationally.

Q&A: BiBoViNo's Frantz Roesch on why BIB wine is going upmarket

Published: 10 February, 2015

Frantz Roesch, founder of French bag-in-box retail concept BiBoViNo, reveals his plans for UK expansion, high profile backers and why it will focus on old world wines only.

Tesco and rest of the supermarket industry returning to growth, says Kantar

Published: 10 February, 2015

After 13 reported months of decline Tesco has posted 0.3% growth and the supermarket industry as a whole appears to be improving with growth accelerating to 1.1%.

Cambridge Wine's Hal Wilson urges independents to lobby their MP for duty cut

Published: 10 February, 2015

Following yesterday's call by Harpers to independent wine merchants to play their part in the industry wide campaign to convince the Chancellor to issue a duty cut on wine and spirits in his March Budget, leading independent Hal Wilson of Cambridge Wine Merchants today explains why he has personally lobbied his local MP, the Liberal Democrat Julian Huppert, and urges other merchants to do the same.

Drinks producers and retailers 'get personal' for Valentine's Day

Published: 09 February, 2015

Wine and spirits retailers and producers are looking to cash in on love this Valentine's Day with a host of personalised and quirky products alongside the more straightforward deals.

Chris Dee takes helm at Booths after 20 years with northern retailer

Published: 06 February, 2015

Chris Dee, who started his career at Booths as a wine and spirits director, has been promoted to the new position of chief executive officer after 20 years with the company.

Supermarkets special report: Why less is more

Published: 06 February, 2015

As the UK's major multiples look to pare back their wine and spirit ranges in order to boost performance and compete with discounters, Gemma McKenna asks what this new direction will mean for the rest of the trade

Tesco calls on wine suppliers for added payments as Grocery Code Adjudicator starts inquiry

Published: 06 February, 2015

In the last 24 hours Tesco has issued two separate requests for wine suppliers to pay effectively the same additional payment for increased sales volumes they have received for their products following its recent product cull.

Wine merchants can have their say and take part in March for Independents survey

Published: 06 February, 2015

There is still time for independent wine merchants to have their say and share their views on how they see the sector, the opportunities and challenges they face, which wine and spirits categories are selling the most and what they would like to see more from their suppliers, by taking part in Harpers exclusive online poll.

Conviviality on track to open 20 more stores by April

Published: 05 February, 2015

Bargain Booze owner Conviviality Retail is planning to open a further 20 stores by April, and is targeting the south west for expansion.

Q&A: Conviviality's Diana Hunter on acquisitions and expanding ranges

Published: 05 February, 2015

The ink has barely dried on Conviviality's latest acquisition deal - to take on 37 stores across Yorkshire and the East Midlands - and chief executive Diana Hunter already has plans in place for further expansion.

Grocery Adjudicator launches Tesco investigation

Published: 05 February, 2015

The Groceries Code Adjudicator has launched an investigation into Tesco over evidence that it delayed supplier payments and demanded fees for better positioning on shelf.

Felix Solis UK toasts sales rise of 28% in first year as standalone firm

Published: 04 February, 2015

The UK arm of Spanish wine company Felix Solis is toasting a cracking first year as a standalone company as its sales have soared 28% in the last 12 months.