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Marks and Spencer always like to be the pack leaders and now they are the first UK retailer to launch their own TV app for Samsung’s internet-connected TV range.

The app will be on the Samsung Smart TV’s and M&S product ranges will be showcased as well as tips on high-street trends, lifestyle, food, fashion and technology. Speaking about the new app, a Samsung spokesman said the app was not transactional, but added that this was something that might feature in the future, “as Smart TVs continue to advance in technology and more people are becoming aware of it”.

Most Samsung Smart TV apps have predominantly involved partnerships with media companies; however this partnership shows where TV apps might head in the future. At the moment the only other apps available include BBC iPlayer, LoveFilm, Netflix, YouTube, Teletext Holidays, Rightmove, Thomson Local, Facebook and Twitter.

Director for new channels at M&S, Susan Aubrey-Cound, said: “This app enables customers to discover more about our products and innovations from the comfort of their living rooms, whilst supporting our broader marketing channels.”

According to Samsung, more than ten million apps have already been downloaded from the Smart TV app store across the world, which just shows this technology is really starting to be embraced by the public. For those that aren’t up on this type of technology, yet, Smart Hub interfaces on TVs allow viewers to open content from branded apps and the internet with the TV’s allowing allows people to connect wirelessly to other devices including smartphones, laptops and tablets.
Smart huh?

Last year Tesco announced their ‘Big Price Drop’ to much fanfare. However after being beaten by the likes of Sainsbury’s and Morrison’s over the Christmas period and having £5billion knocked off their market share the supermarket giant has decided to revert back to their voucher system.

It was clear to many that their price drop scheme would be a failure after many news publications printed at the time all Tesco had done in the weeks preceding the price drop was to increase prices, so that when they dropped prices customers weren’t really saving any money. A dirty tactic which backfired on the supermarket chain, when shoppers realised what had been done, they then left in droves, taking their customer to Tesco’s main rivals.

Their new national print campaign offers customers a £5-off voucher when they spend more than £40 on a shop, features the strapline; “a helping hand from Tesco” and is backed up by the statement, “It’s just our way of saying ‘thanks’”.

It does seem like Tesco is tempting customers back with the vouchers, however what people really want is the truth from supermarkets. Chief executive Philip Clark admitted that the supermarket was wrong to switch its strategy away from voucher activity over the Christmas period.

Tesco’s rivals Sainsbury’s saw a record-breaking Christmas on the back of its Brand Match strategy, where customers saw prices matched of brands sold by Tesco and Asda via vouchers provided at the till.

The Tesco offer has been running this week, however there isn’t any indication on how long it will last for, but it is also available to customers shopping online as well.

Bain & Company conducted a survey of 6,000 UK shoppers to find which brand most people would recommend to a friend or colleague, hair care brand Kerastase was found to be “most advocated” brand in the UK according to the results of the survey.

Companies were ranked on their a Net Promoter Score (NPS) which is calculated by the percentage of people rating the brand highly on a scale of recommendation, subtracted by the percentage of those who would only rate it between 0-6 on a scale of 1 to 10. Kerastase achieved 80%, 26 percentage points higher than its closest rival in the survey, Mercedes.

When it comes to trying new products, family, partners, friends and experts are normally the main advocates who influence shoppers, especially when it comes to alcohol, fashion, skincare and makeup. This is why the results from the survey are so important for companies. According to the report “winning” consumer products brands must keep shoppers and consumers at the “heart” of everything they do and make their brands distinctive and relevant to shopper needs and “occasions”, such as at point of sale where consumers may be tempted to buy rival brands.

Looking at the brands who reached the top ten of the “most advocated”, only one of them is British (Hotel Chocolate) which means our UK brands have a long way to go to gather consumer support.

The results:

10. Rolex – NPS: 51%

9. Audi – NPS: 52%

8. HTC – NPS: 53%

7. Apple iPod – NPS: 53%

6. Cohiba – NPS: 57%

5. Hotel Chocolat – NPS: 59%

4. Redken – NPS: 59%

3. Apple iPhone – NPS: 60%

2. Mercedes – NPS: 66%

1. Kerastase – NPS: 80%

Cheap Monday, H&M , Monki

Leading fashion retailer H&M will be debuting on London’s Carnaby Street its first standalone stores in the UK for their Cheap Monday and Monki brands next year.

The brands Cheap Monday, a jeans retailer, and Monki, a quirky brand for young women were bought by H&M in 2008. They currently have their own concession stalls in London’s Selfridges department which they have occupied since September however H&M are keen are to push them further with the new shops opening in February.

Also this year entered into a partnership with footballer David Beckham which will see his range of underwear being sold exclusively in its 1,800 shops worldwide. The company is also ready to hit store with their new fashion collaboration which will see a collection designed by Donatella Versace:

“The collection for H&M is the essence of Versace,” Donatella Versace stated. “For the collaboration we’ve brought back from the archives, as well as from more recent collections, some of the icons of Versace, such as the bright prints, the Greek key, and daring cuts. I can’t wait to see how H&M’s wide audience will make these pieces their own.”

Versace for H&M

Donatella is following a number of other designers who have had successful collaborations with H&M including Stella McCartney, Madonna and Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld.

Christmas

Picture courtesy of Christmas stock images

Over half a billion pounds will be spent on retail websites on Monday, which could possibly make it the biggest online trading day in the run up to Christmas.

Kelkoo carried out research covering 50 of the top retailers which predicts Monday to be the busiest day of online shopping this winter time. Offline, it is usually the 18th December.

The results of the Kelkoo research shows that £537m will pass through various websites’ payment systems on Monday. It is also suggested, that on average, 17p in every pound of seasonal shopping would be spent via the internet.

The news came due to the government raising awareness about protections affecting online shoppers in the UK, including a ‘cooling off’ period of seven days which allowed customers to return items without needing to give a specific reason.

“What I want are confident consumers who can stand up for their rights and get a good deal,” This is especially important when times are tight and everyone wants to make sure they have value for money.” Explained consumer minister Ed Davey.