Retail news round-up on January 28, 2014: Carpetright profits to come in at lower end of expectations, Morrisons operations director quits weeks after joining and Amazon takes over £1 in every £4 spent on entertainment.

Carpetright profits to come in at lower end of expectations as Dutch business deteriorates

Floorings specialist Carpetright has flagged that full year profits are expected to be at the lower end of expectations as its Netherlands business has further deteriorated.

Like-for-likes in the Rest of Europe, which includes The Netherlands, dropped 7.7% in the 13 weeks to January 25.

Carpetright’s UK like-for-likes edged up 1.9% during the period.

Morrisons operations director George Dymond quits weeks after joining

Former Coles executive George Dymond, who came to supermarket chain Wm Morrison in January to bolster its online team, has resigned just weeks after joining, The Financial Times reported. Dymond, who was group general manager of merchandise at Coles, was expected to oversee the day-to-day running of retailer’s online grocery service.

However, according to people familiar with the situation, the role had not turned out to be what Dymond was expecting. Morrison is also understood to have been talking to Dymond about an alternative position.

Amazon takes over £1 in every £4 spent on entertainment

Sales at online retailer Amazon accounted for over £1 in every £4 spent on entertainment during the fourth quarter of 2012. Kantar Worldpanel figures showed that Amazon market share increased to 26.3% for the period ending December 22, up 5.9 percentage points against 2012.

The launch of new ‘Next Gen’ consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One also helped increase Game’s market share by 2.3%. During the period, retailer HMV’s overall market share declined by 8.5% to 12.5%, Morrisons’ market share dropped 0.7% and iTunes Music recorded marginal growth of just 0.1%. Video was the most gifted entertainment product in spite of the market suffering a heavy annual slump of 22%.

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