Fashion

The North Face is looking to turn Earth Day, which is celebrated on 22 April, into an official public holiday. To lend added weight to its aspirations, the outdoor brand is set to keep its 113 stores in the United States closed on the day, to enable all workers and customers to “disconnect”.

British sports chain JD Sports enjoyed an enormous increase in turnover last year: it increased by no less than 49.2% to 4.7 billion pounds (5.4 billion euros). Gross profit growth was slightly lower, but amounted to more than a quarter.

French sports chain Decathlon has opened a store of 4300 sqm in Emeryville, near San Francisco: for the French retailer this is a return to the United States after twelve years of absence.

German fashion chain bonprix, part of the Otto Group, has seen its turnover increase for the tenth year in succession. Eastern Europe has been particularly good for the company. Bonprix is also optimistic for the coming year.

Internal documents have revealed that German company Karstadt, the parent of Hudson's Bay Netherlands, is considering closing the Dutch outlets or filing for bankruptcy.

This week, Primark's biggest store opened in Birmingham. Besides the store's vast size, its integrated customer experience should turn it into a major success.

Decathlon will be opening a new warehouse for the Dutch market. Previously, orders in the Netherlands were delivered from Belgium, but the sports chain is changing that procedure. The warehouse will open in Tilburg.