Breakfast briefing: Retail news on Tesco, Shop Direct and M&S

Tesco eyes sale of mobile business

Tesco is set to put its mobile business up for sale in a deal that could be worth hundreds of millions of pounds as boss Dave Lewis intensifies his sale of the grocer’s non-core assets, reports the Financial Times. The retailer has been talking to bankers over recent days about offloading Tesco Mobile.

Amazon patent to allow delivery by tracking smartphone location

Amazon has submitted a patent to the US Patent and Trademark Office, which says that its impending delivery drones will be able to track customer locations via the GPS location of their smartphones, reports CNBC. This patent will allow aerial transportation of consumer goods in a fully automated state.

Tesco dumps PwC as auditors for 32 years

Tesco has axed its auditors of 32 years, PwC, after the £263m accounting scandal rocked the grocer, The Independent reported. A tendering process for a new independent auditor was brought forward by a year as the chief executive Dave Lewis and new chairman John Allan attempt to put behind them the final parts of the discredited former regime under Phil Clarke However, PwC has agreed not to put itself forward for consideration.

Shop Direct calls time on Littlewoods catalogue

Shop Direct has decided to stop Littlewoods catalogue after more than 80 years as consumers switch to online shopping at a rapid pace, reports The Telegraph.

The retailer has already reduced the number of catalogues it produces as shoppers move online. It sent out just 300,000 versions of the last catalogue, down from five million five years ago and 25m a year in its heyday.

M&S to sell Walsh brand trainers for £110

Marks & Spencer has partnered with UK firm Walsh to sell branded trainers for the first time for around £110, The Telegraph reported. The company has designed eight high-end trainers for M&S - four for men and four for women. The trainers will be sold under M&S’s Best of British range, which only includes items produced in the UK, and will go on sale in the autumn.

Meanwhile, the clothing retailer has also admitted for the first time that customers were confused by its new £150m website and said it had made “thousands of changes” since it was launched.