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Retailers 'suffering from above-inflation cost rises'

Apr 23 2008

Costs to retail businesses have risen 'well above inflation' over the past seven or eight years, according to the British Retail Consortium.

Richard Dodd, head of media and campaigns at the consortium, says that a number of increased costs such as fuel, electric bills and tax charges were making life difficult for retailers.

In these 'tough times' Dodd recommends that retailers remain customer-focussed: 'You have to be really clear about who your customers are, what they want and why your option in particular is the best one in that category,' he says.

At the World Retail Congress in Barcelona, retail magnate Philip Green said that the retail sector was as 'tough' as he had ever seen it, which could mean danger for 'smaller people' who 'are not well capitalised'.

The British Retail Consortium is a trade association representing both large and small retailers.

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