GAME CEO Martyn Gibbs backs Game Retail owners OpCapita following the Comet collapse into administration-- telling The Telegraph the retailer is in "good shape."

According to Gibbs GAME is set to make £20 million in earnings (before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) in the financial year ending July 2013.

Apparently games such as FIFA 13, Halo 4 and Assassin's Creed 3 helped the retailer. Gibbs claims GAME UK market share totals around 35%, despite operating from around half the Continue reading...

Private equity firm OpCapita officially puts Comet into administration, handing the ailing 236-store business to restructuring specialist Deloitte.

Next up for OpCapita is the "urgent process" of finding a suitable buyer for the retailer. In the meantime, all Comet shops will continue to trade and pay employees, even if the Comet website is currently out of action.

The retailer also suspended gift vouchers and refunds on faulty goods, much to the ire of customers-to-be. A firesale of remaining Continue reading...

Head of Apple retail, John Browett, is OUT, just 6 months after the former Dixons CEO was hand-picked by Tim Cook in a very publicised move involving a golden "Hello" of $55 million spread over 5 years.

The company gives no reason behind the ousting of Browett, but back in August the Wall Street Journal reported Browett introduced a "new staffing formula" to Apple Stores-- an unpopular strategy involving the slashing of hourly shifts and staff numbers.

According to IFO Apple Store, Browett felt the stores were "too bloated" with employees and was willing to create a "leaner" operation in the name of boosted profits. It's traditional retail thinking that made Browett a hit in his jobs at Tesco and Dixons Stores Group.

Back in November 2011 OpCapita bought Comet for "an aggregate consideration of £2." Now the Financial Times reports the turnaround specialist already considers a sale of the UK CE chain.

"People familiar with the situation" say OpCapita recently received unsolicited approaches to buy Comet from UK and overseas retailers. No official OpCapita statement is yet available.

OpCapita not only acquired Comet for less than your morning cappuccino, but also received a dowry from former owners Kesa worth Continue reading...

Germany's Otto considers the sale of French mail order subsidiary 3 Suisse, following declining sales and losses in the "high double-digit million" range.

"We have involved banks and are currently examining the market to see which parts could be sold," an Otto spokesman tells both Financial Times Deutschland and Reuters. Otto owns 51% of 3 Suisse, a stake it has been building since 1974-- and does not rule out selling it all.

According to the FTD Otto booked over €50 million in 3 Suisse losses fo Continue reading...

PPR is getting rid of the loss-making Fnac unit-- the board decides on a "a project of demerger and flotation" for the book, music and electronics chain.

Also on the chopping block is the Redcats online retailing unit.

"Being independent and granted with autonomous resources, Fnac will be better positioned to fully achieve its growth potential, led by its current, committed and talented management," PPR CEO François-Henri Pinault says.

PPR originally wanted to sell Fnac after marking it down Continue reading...

According to De Tijd Belgium-based Krëfel plans to purchase "significant part" of the ailing Photo Hall electronics stores from the Spector Photo Group.

Spector is under pressure from banks to sell its retail division-- consisting of the Belgian Photo Hall stores and the Hifi International outlets in Luxembourg. Photo Hall currently barely limps along, with sales for the January-August 2012 period dropping by -80% Y-o-Y.

However Krëfel is not the only company showing an interest in Photo Hall. D Continue reading...

It's no secret that retail at the moment is excruciatingly hard, but why has Metro Group switched from up-beat to gloom after Q1/Q2? It's not all about Media-Saturn, that's for sure...

This text below is direct from Metro's own 2012 H1 business report and it suggests the Media-Saturn business was never easy this year. Media-Saturn were more than 100 million euro off EBIT from last year (and deep in the red) even as the global HQ was reporting a rosier outlook (presumably based on their other assets).

One significant point is that only 3.8% of total sales were generated online which does not compare well with other CE retailers today (In January 2012, Dixon's Group published its online sales as 19% of business; sure, the online sales can be affected by markets-served as some cultures are more pre-disposed to web buying but the trend line is clear.)

Follow the Metro Group 2012 H1 report on Media-Saturn (immediately below) and decide for yourself...