Over the past ten years, the number of shops in Flanders and Brussels has decreased by 15 %. Strangely, the vacancy rate increased, but so too did the amount of retail space that was actually used. E-commerce is often presented as the culprit, but the story is actually much more complex than that.

Danish brewery group Carlsberg has presented two types of paper bottles, which were developed by the Paper Bottle Company (Paboco). That joint venture's objective is to develop a fully recyclable paper bottle.

Continental Foods, the food group including such brands as Aïki, Devos Lemmens and Liebig, has signed the ‘Better Chicken Commitment’ (BCC). This means, among other things, that by 2026 the company will Continental Foods will only use higher welfare chicken in its products in five European countries.

Following a new investment, H&M Group has acquired a majority stake in re-commerce platform Sellpy. The investment should support the platform's expansion abroad, as well as fitting in with H&M's objective of becoming more sustainable.

FNG, the parent company of Miss Etam and Claudia Sträter, among others, is restructuring its Dutch head office organisation, resulting in the loss of 50 jobs. At the same time, the company has announced the appointment of Richard Turk as the Managing Director for FNG Netherlands.

The Belgian branch of Thomas Cook Retail, which filed for bankruptcy two weeks ago, is partly starting over again under the umbrella of the Spanish travel agency, Wamos. As a result of the takeover, 195 employees were able to return to work.

Online supermarket Picnic is going to equip some of its electric vans with solar panels. The trial is a new step in the online supermarket’s policy of making deliveries in the most sustainable way possible.

The French luxury products group LVMH, which owns such iconic brands as Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Dom Pérignon, has once again amazed the market with its astounding quarterly results.

Last week, Ahold Delhaize officially opened its AI for Retail Lab (AIR Lab) in Delft. It’s not the only initiative in the field of artificial intelligence. Through 'Kickstart AI', the company, together with 4 other large Dutch companies (ING, KLM, NS and Philips), wants to give AI a boost in the Netherlands.

Just dock at the supermarket during your boat trip? A Dutch Spar was the world’s first to do it, but from March, it is also possible at Delhaize in Hasselt. The new establishment on the Kanaalkom, in the brand-new Quartier Bleu district, will be located on a stretch of quay where sailors can moor.

The German retail group Rewe is being given the green light for the acquisition of Lekkerland, which in Belgium also includes wholesaler Conway. This will create a new European superpower in the convenience sector.

Inter Ikea (owner of the Ikea brand and manager of the franchise activities) may still have to pay millions of euros in taxes the company is said to have avoided, if two deals with the Dutch tax authorities are revoked.

Ecover and AB InBev have joined forces: the manufacturer of environmentally friendly detergents is using residual alcohol (a waste product left over from the production of alcohol-free beer) as a raw material for a new detergent.

Dutch fashion brand Scotch & Soda has suffered a net loss of 12.9 million euros in its latest financial year. The new CEO, Frederick Lukoff, wants to grow the brand abroad by highlighting values such as freedom and tolerance.

Dutch textile discounter Zeeman is going to close several dozens of stores in the Netherlands over the coming years. Growth will therefore have to come from e-commerce and new stores abroad, especially in Southern Europe.

Belgian online pharmacy Viata has raised 3.8 million euros to finance its international growth. The money comes from Antwerp-based family business Alcopa and a new loan.

French holding company Cafom is looking to sell its subsidiary Habitat. Loss-making branches of the furniture chain are to be closed.

Amazon is currently in talks to make the technology behind its cashierless Go stores available to other parties, such as retailers in airports and cinemas.

Fashion web shop Zalando has opened a temporary shop in Madrid, where customers can try on virtual clothing. However, there are no actual items of clothing in the Spanish shop.

Dutch glasses discounter Eyelove is going to expand into France. The company wants to capitalise on a new healthcare law that is entering into force next year, which obliges opticians to also offer cheaper pairs of glasses.

The European Commission has imposed a fine of 31.6 million euros on canned vegetable producers CEBAB and Coroos for running a cartel. Bonduelle, who revealed the existence of the cartel, escaped a 250 million euro fine.

Carrefour has opened a 'clean' cosmetics store in Paris, called Sources. Transparency about the composition of the products is key to the concept: more than 75 controversial ingredients have been excluded from the range.

The French furniture discounter Centrakor has opened its first Belgian store in Gosselies, near Charleroi - the first foreign store at all for the chain.

H&M has published its full results for the third quarter: for the first time in two years, the Swedish fashion group has seen a rise in its profits.

The first Belgian store of Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo is to open on 6 November in Pelt, near the Belgian-Dutch border. Expectations are running high, as the municipality is already supersaturated when it comes to supermarkets.

Italian fashion label Diesel has developed a ​​ collection of sustainable clothing in cooperation with Coca-Cola. The garments are partly made from recycled plastic bottles.

Online beer platform Beerwulf.com is starting a trial with beer subscriptions in the United Kingdom. At a later date, the trials will be expanded to other European countries as well.

Following France and Belgium, Germany is the next country to introduce the Nutri-Score nutrition label, after an independent consumer survey commissioned by the German government found this to be the best label.

Consulting firm McKinsey has opened an experimental store in the Mall of America, where retailers can test and analyse all kinds of technologies intended to transform the shopping experience.

From 2021, postal tariffs for letters and parcels from abroad will increase, as each country will then be able to set its own prices for distribution. This will have serious consequences for orders placed with cheap Chinese web shops.

Over the past year, textile discounter Zeeman has once again seen its turnover and profit rise. The company is identifying many opportunities for growth, in particular in Spain.