Euro zone retail sales plunged more than expected in June as prices at factory gates continued to rise, data showed Wednesday, signalling a weakness in consumer demand that could herald a recession in H2.

​Hermès saw a sales boom in Q2 as — like its luxury peers — it enjoyed strong growth in Europe and the US with China also recovering during June towards the end of the quarter.

Free-spending tourists in Europe are expected to drive brisk second quarter sales at French luxury groups LVMH, Gucci-owner Kering and Hermes, helping to offset the impact of disruptions in China from Covid restrictions.

​It's no surprise that the heatwave in recent days deterred UK consumers from shopping in physical locations, but they clearly felt too hot to shop overall as they also cut back on their online purchases.

Shopify Inc on Tuesday announced a partnership with YouTube to allow merchants to sell through the video platform, as it looks to tap into the growing number of content creators launching their own e-commerce stores.

The weak euro is big draw for tourists, particularly Americans – who are flagged as a key growth driver for the European luxury goods sector in the second quarter, according to analysts from Barclays.

Footfall in the renowned Parisian avenue has doubled compared to last year, according to a Cushman & Wakefield/My Traffic study, a stronger rebound than recorded elsewhere in Europe.

A new BCG and Comité Colbert study shows that 65% of consumers “take into account companies' commitment to sustainable development when deciding on their purchases” and that luxury still needs to do more to excel online.

As global tourism flows resume after two years marked by the pandemic, the US cosmetics group has opened a new 28,000 m2 distribution centre in Switzerland.

Northern Irish businesses urged Britain to tackle disruption to post-Brexit trade through negotiations with the European Union rather than pursuing unilateral plans published on Monday.

After seven years with Rémy Cointreau, the French executive has taken the helm of the travel retail business for the luxury giant’s Beauty division. Farnier has a 30-year-plus experience in the luxury goods market.

​Major London shopping and tourist destination Camden Market is up for sale with a £1.3 billion price tag, according to a news report.  The historic North London destination attracts around 30 million visitors a year.

Some six months after the passing of its menswear creative director, Louis Vuitton displayed another nine looks designed by the late Virgil Abloh in the house’s Fall-Winter 2022 Spin-Off Show of menswear held in Bangkok.

​Shaftesbury, the West End property giant that's in talks about a merger with Capco, has reported what might be its last set of results before a merger is unveiled with footfall up and its portfolio value growing.

Major global brands will “continue betting on physical retail to drive sales in resilient destination cities”, a Savills report says. And it named New York, Paris and London as “the most attractive cities for retailers”.

​Luxury businesses have renewed calls for the UK government to reverse its decision to end VAT-free shopping for tourists, saying Britain is losing out to other European countries as big-spenders go elsewhere.