The Apprenticeship Levy, which the Government hopes will help create three million new apprentice positions, is due to come into force in April next year. Draft Regulations have now been produced, setting out how employers should calculate, report and pay their Levy liability. A recent study by the British Chamber of Commerce showed that, just 6 months before it goes live, two out of five businesses (39%) did not understand or even know about the…

I am pleased to confirm that we have just released our Retail Report for 2015. This has been done in conjunction with Kantar Retail, the British Retail Consortium and Retail Trust and features a foreword from the BRC and from Andy Street of John Lewis.   An increasingly important element of any plan for growth is the retailer’s omnichannel strategy.  This year, we have called on retailers and shoppers to let us know how they see…

Squire Sanders recently co-hosted The Retail Debate: Fight or Flight in Leeds to consider the shape of the UK retail industry in the current economic climate and what the future may hold in the ever-changing retail landscape. A number of key themes emerged from the “People Power” breakout session and it became clear that many of the issues facing UK retailers are shared by employers more widely, including: Engagement:  There was a general consensus that…

The UK Government recently announced that it will relax the Sunday trading laws (which currently prevent large stores from opening for more than six hours on Sundays) for an eight-week period during the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics.  It is keen to ensure that the UK is seen as “open for business” during this period and that retailers can benefit from the extra custom of visitors to the Games. Although these changes will only be…