Sport England, John Lewis, Admiral: Everything that matters this morning

Good morning and welcome to Marketing Week’s round-up of the news that matters in the marketing world today.

Sport England replicates This Girl Can message for schools

Sport England is extending its popular ‘This Girl Can’ campaign into schools, in a bid to tackle low activity levels among young people. Nearly a third of young people currently engage in less than 30 minutes of physical activity per day.

Sport England has worked with behaviour change specialist Hopscotch to launch a platform called Studio You, that will provide PE teachers across England with access to a digital library of alternative workouts designed to engage girls with physical activity. Some £1.5m of National Lottery Funding has been invested in the scheme.

Studio You is to be piloted in 20 schools from February 2021. In line with the This Girl Can campaign it uses small groups of relatable real people, and presents sport as accessible, fun and rewarding. It uses the tagline ‘Press play. Have fun.’

“In focus groups girls who had disengaged from school sports used words like ‘competitive’, ‘forced’, ‘stressy’ and ‘repetitive’ to describe their PE lessons,” says Jayne Molyneux, director of children and young people at Sport England.

“The Studio You platform will help teachers challenge those perceptions by re-injecting all-important fun, choice and ownership into the PE experience for those that don’t naturally gravitate towards it.”

New campaign and customer magazine for John Lewis Home

John Lewis has launched a TV campaign to support its home retail department. The ad follows a new customer magazine, called At Home, which became available last week.

It takes a humorous approach, highlighting situations that we now experience in our homes, because we are spending so much time in them thanks to remote working. A digital strand of the campaign, launched earlier this month, looks at the value and style of John Lewis Home products. Meanwhile, a Pinterest competition is encouraging customers to share pictures of their recent John Lewis purchases.

“Our customers have told us that their homes have never mattered more to them. In addition to sleeping and eating they’ve had to use them to fulfill new functions such as offices, gyms, entertaining children and much more, and so they have proved to be the most important place in their lives,” says John Lewis customer director, Claire Pointon.

“This campaign will raise awareness of our home products, celebrate our unrivalled design credibility and craftsmanship while communicating our great value.”

Consumers rate Admiral’s lockdown ads highest

Insurance group Admiral achieved the highest consumer rating for its ads during the Covid-19 lockdown, according to research by YouGov.

Admiral’s coronavirus communications strategy was the most positively rated of 30 large companies included in the study. Eight out of ten consumers rated Admiral positively, followed by Sainsbury’s (71%) and Domino’s (70%).

Not all consumers think it is appropriate for companies to email coronavirus information or advice, the study found. While 60% say it is appropriate, 28% disagree. And consumers are split on whether companies should advertise what actions they are taking to deal with the pandemic: 41% are in favour, 38% aren’t.

“While businesses continue to communicate with their customers throughout the coronavirus crisis, new YouGov research shows that there are some who have been more successful in earning positive reactions than others,” says YouGov associate director of reputation research, Richard Elliott.

“Admiral’s ‘coronavirus refund’ received many plaudits in the news and on social media so it is unsurprising the insurance company has topped our ranking.”

IPA study looks at student attitudes to marketing industry

UK students may be the future talent of the marketing industry, but few of them know much about the work or employers involved, according to new IPA research.

The research, released this morning, finds a keen interest to join the sector among current students and recent graduates. But despite a majority (87%) being aware of ad agencies in general, and 77% being aware of media agencies, more than half were unable to name a single agency. Of those who could, Saatchi & Saatchi and WPP were the best known, but each achieved only 4% awareness.

There was little knowledge of how ad agencies work, or what salaries can be expected. And while 42% expect long hours, 49% have no idea what workload they could expect. A smaller group of 8% thinks those in agencies work short hours.

Women are more likely than men to want to join the advertising industry (32% vs 24%) and BAME respondents are more likely than white respondents to find it appealing (34% vs 27%). Women and BAME individuals also placed a greater emphasis on the importance of inclusive workplaces in their future careers. There is a growing expectation from students that their managers will show a degree of emotional intelligence.

“We often talk about needing to recruit diverse talent, but we don’t know where to start,” says Michael Brown, a member of the IPA’s Talent Leadership Group and partner at agency UM.

“This research pinpoints the areas that we need to address. Ironically, it is clear we need to market ourselves better to this demographic. We also need to question why, if more people from ethnic minority backgrounds want to join the industry, this doesn’t then translate into those numbers actually entering the business.”

Shopping bills to rise on no-deal Brexit warns BRC

UK shoppers look set to feel the impact of a no-deal Brexit at supermarket tills. The British Retail Consortium says tariffs would add £3.1bn a year to the cost of importing food and drink, and that retailers would have no choice but to pass this on to consumers, equating to around £112 extra per household.

A new UK Global Tariff, set to come into effect in January if no Brexit deal is agreed, would see a tariff of more than 5% applied to 85% of food imports from the EU.

BRC director of food, Andrew Opie, says Covid-19 was already making life hard for customers on low incomes.

“A no-deal Brexit will have a massive impact on their ability to afford essential goods,” he adds. “UK consumers have benefitted from great value, quality and choice of food thanks to our ability to trade tariff-free with the EU. There is now the risk of a £3bn tax bill for the food we cannot source here in the UK.”

Thursday, 24 September

Supermarkets urge shoppers to resist stockpiling

Supermarkets are urging consumers to wear masks and resist stockpiling as the UK enters a new phase of Covid-19 restrictions.

Outgoing Tesco CEO Dave Lewis describes panic buying as “unnecessary”, adding that there is no need for shoppers to stock up on essentials as new measures are taken to halt the spread of the virus. Lewis told Sky News the message was one of “reassurance”, explaining that panic buying only creates tension in the supply chain.

Aldi UK CEO Giles Hurley has also written to customers asking them to continue to shop “considerately”, reassuring them that stores would remain fully stocked.

Elsewhere, Asda has confirmed it is introducing 1,000 new “safety marshals” across its 639 UK stores, who will remind shoppers to wear face coverings in-store and provide customers with sanitised shopping baskets on arrival.

The supermarket has said that any customer entering its stores without a face covering will be offered a pack of disposable masks to be paid for at the end of their trip. In addition, extra hand sanitiser stations will be placed in the busiest areas of the supermarkets.

“We know that safety remains a key priority for our customers and we will continue to do all we can to keep them and our colleagues safe in store, as we have since the start of the pandemic,” says Asda chief operating officer, Anthony Hemmerdinger.

On Monday, Morrisons announced it was reinstating marshals on the doors of its supermarkets to monitor shopper numbers and remind customers to wear face masks. Last week, the supermarket also kicked off a new cleaning programme that will see each store receive a three-week deep-clean.

DFS switches focus to digital marketing as lockdown hits revenue

Furniture group DFS has switched its focus to digital marketing in a bid to drive “significant efficiencies” after the Covid-19 lockdown took a chunk out of its revenues.

Group revenue fell by £271.7m during the 52 weeks to 28 June to £724.5m, caused by a “pause in trading” during lockdown, while the business made a pre-tax loss of £56.8m.

While the sofa retailer describes marketing as a “traditional DFS strength” and “major” area of investment, the group believes it can save money by focusing on what it describes as “granular data-led analysis” in relation to its digital marketing.

During the full year to 28 June a greater proportion of the company’s advertising expenditure was spent on digital marketing, as DFS worked with Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to develop “increasingly targeted customer campaigns”.

The business also claims to have improved its on-site search capabilities, becoming the first sofa retailer to introduce “visual search”, which enables customers to take photos of any sofa they see in any setting and compare against the DFS range.

The company says it has now identified “optimum amounts” of marketing investment by brand for the current financial year, which it plans to review on a regular basis in line with market conditions.

Looking ahead, DFS describes the economic outlook as uncertain due to the ongoing pandemic and the end of the Brexit transition period. As a result, the business will prioritise investment in its long-term digital strategy and time-limit any “incremental cost commitments” including discretionary marketing spend.

P&G commits to prioritise direct deals with media partners

Proctor & Gamble (P&G) has committed to deal direct with media partners and move away from the “antiquated” upfronts system of TV media buying.

Speaking at the Association of National Advertisers Media & Measurement conference on Wednesday, P&G chief brand officer Marc Pritchard said the upfronts system is based on “information asymmetry”, whereby media companies hold the advantage because they possess a “full view of the entire spending forecast”.

He described the system as wasteful for marketers as bulk deals mean brands buy too much inventory, causing customers to be inundated with ads. Instead, the P&G chief brand officer called for greater flexibility to buy media in real-time and the ability to adjust to the changing market without brands being penalised.

Pritchard confirmed that P&G will prioritise direct deals with media partners and programmatic TV buys, as well as continuing to interrogate the platforms on issues around measurement and accountability. In recent years, P&G has taken more marketing and media buying functions in-house, and focused on fixed retainers with agencies for planned work.

Bake Off becomes Channel 4’s biggest show since 2018

The Great British Bake Off attracted a peak viewership of 7.9 million on its return on Tuesday (22 September), making it Channel 4’s biggest broadcast of 2020 to-date and he highest rating broadcast since the GBBO series nine final in 2018.

Attracting a 32% share of audience and an average viewership of 6.9 million, the opening episode of series 11 is the show’s biggest overnight launch audience since it moved to Channel 4 in 2017. Furthermore, GBBO pulled in the biggest audience of any channel from 8.15pm to 9.45pm and the highest share of 16- to 34-year-old viewers in its time slot, making it the most popular programme among this demographic so far in 2020, excluding addresses from the Prime Minister and The Queen.

“It was one of our top priorities to get Bake Off on air this year and I’m delighted the new series has brought some much-needed cheer to so many people,” says Channel 4 director of programmes, Ian Katz.

“After all the grimness and hardship of the last few months, it felt like the country badly needed the reassuring warmth and wholesomeness of the Bake Off tent – a place where the worst thing that can happen is a pineapple upside down cake ending up on the floor.”

The success of the launch episode is good news for Aldi, which took over from Amazon as the show’s exclusive broadcast sponsor as part of a deal including spin-off shows Bake Off: An Extra Slice and Junior Bake Off.

The supermarket wants to use the sponsorship to underpin its “quality positioning and light-hearted tone”. This is a crucial time for the discounter, which has struggled to grow market share as shoppers have shifted to ecommerce during the pandemic, a channel where Aldi does not currently operate at scale.

Barnardo’s shines a light on children suffering from grief amid Covid-19

Barnardo’s is hoping to raise awareness of the long-term support needed to stop Covid-19 causing permanent harm to a generation of children and young people suffering from grief.

Launching today, the third film in the charity’s ‘Believe In Me’ series, created with agency FCB Inferno, shows a young schoolboy talking about how he ‘feels different’ since recently losing his mother to an unexplained illness. As the boy talks about the shock of her sudden death, the viewer sees he is being observed by a crow, which follows the child wherever he goes.

A metaphor for the overwhelming grief the boy experiences due to his mother’s death, the crow is a reminder of the all-encompassing impact losing a parent has on a child. Airing on Channel 4, Sky and C4 digital, the 40-second ad ends by showing the audience the boy is recounting his experience to a specialist Barnardo’s counsellor and receiving the support he needs to deal with his loss.

The film is part of a wider strategy for the charity that calls on the government to use the pandemic as a catalyst to bring about change in the education system to ensure schools prioritise child welfare and wellbeing on a par with academic achievement.

“Our new TV advert features a young boy suffering from grief after the death of his mother. Sadly, these raw emotions will be familiar to thousands of children and families across the UK, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic,” says Barnardo’s chief executive, Javed Khan.

“Too many children and young people have lost family members and experienced loss in their wider communities – especially those from BAME communities. Other have lost support systems, contact with friends and families, and missed out on opportunities, creating feelings of isolation and anxiety for the future.”

Wednesday, 23 September

Cadbury Dairy Milk launches ‘The Originals’

Cadbury Dairy Milk is launching a campaign that focuses on the unexpected, inspiring stories told by members of the older generation.

The activity is part of the next phase of the ‘Donate your words’ collaboration with Age UK. ‘The Originals’ was prompted by the fact that 225,000 older people often go a whole week without speaking to anyone and asks the audience to take the time to chat and listen to the elders in their lives and perhaps learn something they didn’t know about them before.

The film will run across Sky Cinema, social and digital channels, alongside a series of outdoor assets that form part of a comprehensive digital and social campaign.

“We are really proud of our partnership with Age UK and the inspiring and moving films we have developed to support our Donate Your Words campaign,” says Cadbury SBM Claudia Miceli.

“This latest film really celebrates the older people in our lives and encourages us to speak to them to discover the incredible and surprising things they have achieved and lived through.

“We know that this year due to Covid-19, older people have been more socially isolated than ever but, in amongst all the worry, we wanted to strike a positive note and celebrate them – this film does just that.”

Spotify unveils ‘Your Daily Drive’

Streaming service Spotify has launched a campaign promoting the launch of its playlist featuring timely news podcasts and personalised music in one place, known as ‘Your Daily Drive’.

The launch comes as Spotify research reveals that 43% of Brits say they would like to stay more up-to-date with current events, while nearly half (49%) are seeking ways to find more headspace in their day, with many turning to audio to do so.

The service includes short-form podcast news updates, updated music selections and a personalised mix of users’ favourite songs and artists interspersed with new, unheard tracks.

The outdoor campaign is focused on key locations, including Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and London.

“At Spotify we believe in providing access to personalised content that our users love,” says Spotify managing director UK Tom Connaughton.

“That’s why we are proud to introduce a new offering in the UK and Ireland that will revolutionise people’s daily listening experience: this new playlist gives listeners the current affairs updates we know they’d like more of alongside the music they want, blended seamlessly into their day.”

IAB wins Unilever and Coty support ahead of Gold Standard 2.0

The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB UK), the industry body for digital advertising, has announced the addition of Unilever and Coty to its list of brands backing the Gold Standard initiative.

The high-profile duo join Asda, Coca-Cola and Tesco, among others, who have committed to prioritising Gold Standard certified suppliers, or questioning suppliers and encouraging them to certify.

The news came as IAB UK launched Gold Standard 2.0, introducing more rigorous criteria, requiring certified companies to implement IAB Europe’s transparency and consent framework version 2.0.

The move is seen as a significant step towards proactively resolving privacy concerns within the digital advertising industry.

“At Unilever we recognise the central role advertisers’ investments make in shaping the digital ad industry and the importance of cross-industry collaboration in actively improving transparency and addressing fraud,” says Unilever’s UK and Ireland media director Emma Saksena.

“The Gold Standard champions the same values that we are driving through our Responsibility Framework and work with Global Alliance for Responsible Media, which is why we’re delighted to be a Gold Standard advertiser supporter.

“Initiatives such as the IAB Gold Standard are key to a healthy and successful digital ad industry – one that works in the interests of all. As the criteria for the Gold Standard becomes more robust, now is the time for advertisers to get behind it and invest accordingly.”

Facebook, YouTube and Twitter agree on commitment to hate speech

Tech giants Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, in collaboration with marketers and agencies through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), have agreed on a common set of definitions for hate speech and other harmful content.

Four key areas for action have been identified: the adoption of GARM common definitions for harmful content; the development of GARM reporting standards on harmful content; the commitment to have independent oversight on operations, integrations and reporting; and the commitment to develop and deploy tools to better manage advertising adjacency.

All the platforms will now enforce these standards as part of their advertising content standards and label and enforce the common definitions.

The changes follow 15 months of talks within GARM between major advertisers, agencies and key global platforms, with the first changes to be introduced this month.

GARM is a cross-industry initiative founded and led by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and supported by other trade bodies, including the ANA, ISBA and the 4As.

“The issue of harmful content online has become one of the challenges of our generation,” says WFA CEO Stephan Loerke. “As funders of the online ecosystem, advertisers have a critical role to play in driving positive change and we are pleased to have reached agreement with the platforms on an action plan and timeline in order to make the necessary improvements.

“A safer social media environment will provide huge benefits not just for advertisers and society but also to the platforms themselves.”

Advertising Association chief calls for business rates relief

Advertising Association CEO Stephen Woodford says the government’s latest restrictions, announced following increased rates of Covid-19 infections, should be matched by new measures to ease the impact on the already hard-hit advertising sector.

“Advertising is a driver of economic activity and growth and with business and consumer confidence so fragile, we call on the government to match further restrictions on economic activity with measures to alleviate their impact, particularly to continue to support jobs and businesses that are hardest hit, like many of the media sectors dependent on advertising,” says Woodford.

“This is particularly important, given the indication that such restrictions will be necessary over the next six months, coming as they do during the biggest quarter annually for ad spend in the run-up to Christmas.”

Woodford adds that advertising can play a key role in assisting with helping the national public health effort at such a critical time and that the AA has already proposed a system of advertising tax credit to the chancellor.

“More specifically, we ask Government to look again at aspects such as business rates relief on office premises and out-of-home poster sites, plus sectoral support for the most challenged areas of the advertising economy including entertainment, leisure, travel and hospitality, as well as the extension of help for SMEs and freelancers and other means to support employment as the furlough scheme comes to an end.”

Tuesday, 22 September

Hospitality industry given 10pm closing time

Pubs, bars, restaurants and other hospitality venues in England will have to close at 10pm from Thursday as the government introduces new rules to help reduce the spread of Covid-19.

The measures also include restricting the sector to table service only, not allowing orders to be placed at the bar.

The hospitality sector is already struggling amid the fallout from the pandemic. Whitbread has said it may cut up to 6,000 jobs as “demand for travel remains subdued”. Its like-for-like sales were down 75% for the first half of the year as it was forced to close its hotels and restaurants for a number of months.

The government is also to update its guidance to urge people to work from home where they can. And prime minister Boris Johnson will stress the need to follow social distancing guidelines, not to meet in groups larger than six, wear face coverings and wash hands regularly.

The changes comes as the UK’s Covid-19 alert moved to four, meaning transmission is “high or rising exponentially”. The government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance has warned there could be 50,000 new coronavirus cases a day by mid-October if nothing is done to halt the spread. That could lead to more than 200 deaths a day by mid-November.

‘Rule of six’ fails to deter shoppers as footfall increases

Footfall across UK retail destinations rose by 2.4% last week compared to the week before, showing that the impact of the government’s ‘rule of six’ has not dented confidence in shopping.

High street footfall was up 5.2% week on week, while shopping centres and retail parks experienced declines of 0.8% and 0.3% respectively.

Despite this rise, footfall remains well down on last year at 28.7% and the comparison with last year has worsened again after it narrowed to 27.5% the week before. Retail parks outperformed on this measure with footfall down just 12.5% year on year, compared to 34.3% for high streets and 32.6% for shopping centres.

Springboard insights director Diane Wehrle comments: “After the first week of the ‘rule of six’, retail footfall bounced back after last week’s first decrease in footfall since mid-April. However, unlike last year when footfall also rose in this week, the increase in footfall was wholly driven by high streets whilst footfall in both retail parks and shopping centres declined from the week before.”

Public Health England brings ‘Stoptober’ campaign under its ‘Better Health’ brand

Public Health England is bringing its annual ‘Stoptober’ campaign under its recently launched adult health brand ‘Better Health’ as it looks to better thread together its individual initiatives.

Stoptober, now in its ninth year, aims to get smokers to quite and claims to have helped more than 2 million people since it was launched in 2012. Smoking is currently at a record low among adults of 13.9%, although that still means an estimated 6.1 million people in the UK smoke.

This year’s push focuses on the improvement to lung health caused by quitting. Developed by M&C Saatchi, it uses a ‘breathe easier’ approach, using a metaphor that references how smoking damages lungs.

The campaign, which will cost around £1m, will run across outdoor, radio, PR, online and social media, while there is also a Stoptober app, Facebook Messenger bot, emails, SMS and an online community. There is a new focus this year on targeting those aged 18 to 34 after an increase among this age group during Covid-19.

PHE’s deputy head of marketing, Alexia Clifford, says: “Stoptober, now in its ninth year, has become a national calendar moment and encouraged over 2 million quit attempts. There’s never been a better time to stop smoking with the wide range of support available to people. Lung health is more important than ever, and I hope that this year’s campaign will continue to encourage many more smokers to quit.”

Grolsch returns to the UK with new brand identity and marketing campaign

Grolsch is returning to the UK market after being delisted last year with a new premium positioning and lower alcohol content.

A campaign, called ‘Double-brewed, for doubled the flavour’ will focus on provenance and quality after owner Asahi moved brewing from the UK to the Netherlands. It also has a new visual identity and ‘swing-top’ bottle, as well as a reduced alcohol level of 4%.

Grolsch and Future Stars global brand director at Asahi International, Paul Cornell, says: “Grolsch Premium Pilsner is a highly distinctive brand that’s full of character and holds a special place in the hearts and minds of many British consumers. It is back with a fresh brand identity and a brilliant, revitalised liquid, now brewed at its iconic home in East Netherlands.

“The new visual identity and marketing campaign heroes this provenance and Grolsch’s exceptional brewing heritage, honed over many generations, whilst demonstrating its great relevancy to today’s consumer. The ‘double brewed for double the flavour’ message at the heart of the campaign has real authenticity which has shown to resonate well in our consumer research.”

Grolsch is also hoping a focus on sustainability will help win over drinkers. It users 100% green electricity in its brewery, reuses waste and reduced plastic use with recyclable packaging.

Monday, 21 September

Trump endorses TikTok takeover

US president Donald Trump has given his “blessing” to the proposed takeover of the US arm of TikTok by Oracle and Walmart.

The deal would see the creation of a new company – TikTok Global – that would be headquartered in the US and have an American chief executive. Oracle intends to acquire a 12.5% stake in TikTok Global and host the social media platform’s data, while retail giant Walmart would take a 7.5% cut.

Prior to the deal being struck with Oracle and Walmart, Trump had ordered the Chinese-owned video-sharing app to be banned in the US, citing “national security concerns”.

Elsewhere, a US judge has blocked a ban on fellow Chinese messaging and payments app WeChat, set to come into force on Sunday night, which would have prevented the app from being available to download in the US. Judge Laurel Beeler said the ban raised serious questions related to the constitution’s first amendment, guaranteeing free speech.

The Trump administration had alleged the app could be used to pass user data to the Chinese government, claims WeChat-owner Tencent strongly denies.

ITV shows solidarity with Diversity over BLM-inspired performance

ITV has taken out print ads in all national newspapers in support of dance group Diversity, after Ofcom received 24,500 complaints about its Black Lives Matter-inspired routine.

The special performance on Britain’s Got Talent on 5 September saw Diversity, a previous winner of the talent show, tell the story of a father recounting the events of 2020 to his son, drawing on the pandemic, police brutality against black people and the death of George Floyd.

In a show of solidarity with Diversity, ITV’s advert features a photo from the performance, with the words, “We are changed by what we see. Just as we are changed when we are seen”, while at the bottom it reads “ITV. Stand with Diversity.”

The words are taken from the broadcaster’s ‘Television’ advert starring Sir Trevor McDonald from April 2019, which asked viewers to look “past the pixels” to the stories that challenge and change us for the better.

In reaction to ITV’s stance, Diversity’s Ashley Banjo said the group had “never been prouder”, adding in an Instagram post “This is what change looks like”.

Ofcom has dismissed all 24,500 complaints, ruling that the dance’s message “was a call for social cohesion and unity”.

Superdry restructures marketing team amid £41.8m loss

Superdry says it is “up-weighting” the headcount of its marketing department to drive the more “intelligent use” of its brand investment as the fashion company seeks to recover from Covid-19.

During the full year to 25 April, revenue fell 19.2% to £704.4m, reflecting a move away from “persistent discounting” and the impact of the pandemic, resulting in a loss before tax £41.8m.

While the fashion brand did reduce marketing spend as a consequence of the lockdown, it is now accelerating its investment at “2.5-3x revenue growth” to support its brand health and fuel customer acquisition.

Superdry is in the process of restructuring its design and marketing functions into integrated teams that sit across collections, rather than product categories, as the company looks to reignite its “brand DNA”. The fashion retailer is “up-weighting” its marketing department headcount and skillset in a bid to make more “intelligent use” of its brand and production marketing budget ahead of the launch of its autumn/winter 20 collection next month.

The company says a better targeted social media strategy has grown its followers by 14% to 3.2 million during the year to 25 April. The retailer now wants to adopt a more influencer-led approach, engaging with “higher profile influencers with an authentic style”. Superdry is also determined to return to a “full price stance” and prior to the onset of the pandemic had decided on just two end of season sales and a Black Friday event.

“We are delivering on the reset of the business, despite the impacts of the pandemic. This has included re-invigorating the store design and layout, preparing for a relaunch of our website, and significantly increasing the number of options available both in store and online,” says Superdry founder and CEO, Julian Dunkerton.

“Above all, I am very excited about our new AW20 collection which will be almost fully ranged by the end of October and is the first full collection I’ve overseen since my return to the business last year. It reflects our new brand philosophy and a return to Superdry’s design-led roots, which encompass a commitment to sustainability.”

Mondelez on the lookout for healthy brands

Cadbury-owner Mondelez is on the lookout for brands “in tune with wellbeing” to add to its vast snack portfolio, describing any acquisition as a “bolt-on” to the wider group.

Speaking to the Financial Times, chief executive Dirk Van de Put said the company is interested in health and wellness brands, but added that acquiring companies “that already have the prestige and the client base, and are starting to develop” is easier than developing your own brand.

Last year, for example, Mondelez spent $284m (£220m) acquiring Perfect Snacks, US-based brand of refrigerated protein bars. According to the company, the acquisition contributed incremental net revenues of $55m (£43m) in the six months to 30 June.

Van de Put said the organisation feels it is right to help the consumer make “conscious decisions” about what they eat in the context of obesity and pointed to the work Mondelez has done to reduce sugar, salt and saturated fat in its products, including Cadbury’s Go Nuttier, which is largely made of nuts.

However, the Mondelez chief executive criticised governments for going “too far” in terms of sugar taxes, and developing rules that are “too restrictive, too prescriptive”. Van de Put told the FT the company would prefer to join forces on campaigns designed to “educate rather than restrict”.

Morrisons reinstates Covid-19 marshals

Morrisons is reinstating marshals on the doors of its supermarkets as cases of Covid-19 increase across the UK.

The marshals will monitor shopper numbers and remind customers entering it 494 stores to wear face masks. According to Morrisons operations director, Jayne Wall, the measures are designed to make customers “feel as safe as possible”.

Last week, the supermarket kicked off a new cleaning programme that will see each store receive a three-week deep-clean. This investment is in addition to the £25m spent on the installation of Perspex screens, PPE for colleagues, social distancing floor markings and visible signage during lockdown. The hygiene programme has created 2,240 new cleaning roles across the supermarket chain.