On Saturday 2 January, more than 500 Colruyt Group stores in Belgium will remain closed. The retailer grants its store employees an extra paid leave day to thank them for their efforts during the corona crisis.

The corona crisis not only knocked down the luxury goods industry, but it commanded a redesign. "Luxury will emerge from this crisis more purposeful and dynamic than ever before", analysts Bain & Company firmly believe.

The corona crisis did not harm online marketplace Etsy. On the contrary, the platform which mainly offers vintage and handmade items was able to easily double its turnover in one year.

Meal kit supplier HelloFresh acquires Factor75, a company specialising in healthy ready meals, in the United States.

Wouter Kolk, European chief executive of Ahold Delhaize, wants to achieve more as a group: Albert Heijn, Delhaize and bol.com need to team up if they wish to remain competitive, according to the CEO.

Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky announced he now owns over forty per cent of the voting rights of Metro. It will allow him to exert even more influence on the direction of the German group.

(update) Danone is reorganising, resulting in 1,500 to 2,000 office employees losing their job. The FMCG company is transforming into a 'local first' organisation, with fewer management layers and greater local autonomy.

As of 2024, Dutch supermarkets will no longer be allowed to sell tobacco products. Online sales will be restricted one year earlier.

Belgian plus size fashion label Paprika takes over the Dutch FNG daughter brand Promiss from entrepreneur Martijn Rozenboom. The company wants to turn it into a fully digitalized brand.

The corona pandemic has crushed luxury goods sales: the European market is shrinking by 36 per cent this year, for the first time since the banking crisis. Bain's analysts aren't counting on a full recovery before 2022/2023.

In France, Black Friday will be delayed by one week: Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire is asking for the sales event to be postponed. Retailers agree on the condition that all stores are allowed to reopen.

A.S. Adventure, which owns Cotswold in the UK and Bever in The Netherlands, is in negotiations about a debt rescheduling. The outdoor chain is dragging a heavy debt and has got into even bigger problems because of corona.

With a deep-frozen alternative to the well-known chilled meal boxes, Ghent-based startup Mealhero wants to conquer more European countries in addition to Belgium and the Netherlands. New investors are injecting 2.5 million euros into the company.

  Both retailers and consumers predict the festive season to be full of discounts and e-commerce. But will it also be the usual peak time for retail? There is low confidence in having a sales boost this Christmas.

Monki revealed a capsule collection made using Green Machine technology. The machine can fully separate cotton from polyester blends and recycle them on a large scale.

Hunkemöller may change owner: investor group Carlyle is attempting to sell the lingerie chain. The timing is unfortunate as demand is falling sharply due to the corona crisis.

Amazon is now also a pharmacist: the online giant delivers medicines to homes in the United States, including prescription medication. In doing so, Jeff Bezos' company gains insight into the medical condition of its customers.

For the first time, Zalando has presented a diversity and inclusivity report which offers an insight into the company's efforts and commitments on the subject. From now on, the fashion platform aims to publish this report annually.

Greenyard continues to grow and is becoming more profitable thanks to the corona crisis. The fruit and vegetable supplier uses the current climate to clear its towering mountain of debt.

Albert Heijn is no longer just a supermarket chain, but a "food technology company". As far as chief executive Marit van Egmond is concerned, digitisation can go even faster: goodbye tills and hello far-reaching personalisation.

The trial project set up by discount chain Action with pick-up points did not prove to be a triumph: the retailer puts sales in its physical stores first and focusses on expansion.

Cactus, the underdog market leader with 61 supermarkets in Luxembourg, continues to expand. Just like runner-up Delhaize, Cactus redirects its focus on convenience stores, thanks to franchise concept Shoppi.

Walmart sells Japanese retailer Seiyu to investment company KKR and e-commerce company Rakuten. The company, which is headed by the Belgian Lionel Desclée, has been for sale for some time now.

Beeline Group has reached an agreement with Australian jewellery specialist Lovisa on the sale of part of its European store network under the SIX and I AM brands.

Amazon wants to make contactless in-garage deliveries available to more people. The company is expanding its so-called 'Key by Amazon In-Garage Delivery service' to more than 4,000 American cities.

Despite a declining turnover, Burberry wants to offer fewer discounts in the near future. The luxury retailer is determined to guard its brand image as the company is attracting new customers in China, South Korea and the United States.

Media Markt and Saturn will not allow themselves to be side-lined now that Europe is once again under the spell of lockdowns. In Belgium, all stores had to be closed, and even then, the electrical retailer is selling well.

The corona crisis has, at best, slowed down the growth of Action, but has not been able to stop it. Over the past twelve months, the discounter has opened another 115 branches.

Yesterday, Prince Charles' charity, The Prince's Foundation, in collaboration with online fashion shop Yoox Net-a-Porter, presented a capsule collection. It is inspired by the work of Leonardo Da Vinci and emphasises sustainability.

The end of voice commerce at Albert Heijn: the supermarket chain has discontinued its app for Google Assistant. The test was unsuccessful and will not be continued. However, Belgian competitor Colruyt will continue with the speech technology.

Singles Day, the yearly bargain festival of Chinese web shop Alibaba, has once again become a great commercial success. A total of 498 billion yuan (almost 64 billion euros) worth of goods were traded.

Le Printemps, the famous French chain of department stores, is also a victim of coronavirus. Four branches in France are closing, as are three branches of daughter chain Citadium.