All Oak Furniture Land articles
Hardwood specialist Oak Furniture Land has become a regular fixture in retail parks across the country in a relatively short space of time. The business began when founder Jason Bannister borrowed £10,000 to buy a container of furniture in 2003 and then sold it on eBay a year later, making a profit. Oak Furniture Land opened its first retail space in 2009, with the launch of a unit in an airfield, and rapidly expanded to close to 80 stores.
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NewsExclusive: John Lewis’ great-grandson and ex-CFO has joined Oak Furnitureland
The great-grandson of John Spedan Lewis who was also the partnership’s former chief finance officer has joined Oak Furnitureland, Retail Week can reveal.
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NewsOak Furnitureland defies sector gloom as it returns to profitability
Oak Furnitureland has defied ongoing pandemic-induced disruption and soaring inflation in freight and raw materials to post a 10% year-on-year uplift in group revenue and a return to profit.
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Retail Navigator AnalysisOak Furnitureland (Overview)
Furniture specialist Oak Furnitureland had been one of the fastest-growing retailers in the UK, with turnover more than doubling over the five years to September 2017 when it passed the £300m mark. Amid an increasingly challenging trading environment and the Covid pandemic piling further pressure on the business, in June 2020 Oak Furnitureland was saved from the brink of collapse by a pre-pack administration deal. The retailer was acquired by global investment management firm Davidson Kempner, with new funding provided by its affiliated asset-lending platform, Breal Zeta Commercial Finance, in support of its existing management’s business plan.
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Retail Navigator AnalysisOak Furnitureland (SWOT)
Oak Furnitureland has diversified its product offer through the introduction of beds, mattresses, sofas and garden furniture as it endeavours to create a whole home offer. Oak Furnitureland takes a multichannel approach with a focus on integrating the online and offline channels so that customers receive their orders quickly.
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Retail Navigator AnalysisOak Furnitureland (People)
Chief executive Alex Fisher has stayed on to lead the business following the ownership change in mid-2020.
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Retail Navigator AnalysisOak Furnitureland (Financials)
Sales for the year to 30 June 2023 (FY2022) climbed a muted 3.1% to £283.7m driven by further product development and a strong performance across its store estate. Gross margins decreased 4% to 52% in FY2022, from 54.2% in FY2021, as result of cost increases – particularly associated with shipping goods from Asia in the early part of the year – as well as keeping costs down for consumers facing pressurised discretionary spend.
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NewsFormer Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe to chair Oak Furnitureland
Oak Furnitureland has announced the appointment of Mike Coupe as its new chair.
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AnalysisBack from the brink – what’s next for retail’s Covid casualties?
The past few months have had a devastating impact on UK retail and swathes of chains have collapsed, but there is light at the end of the tunnel for some of these businesses. Retail Week takes a look at what the future holds for retail’s Covid casualties.
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NewsOak Furniture Land to open shops in fledgling US market
Oak Furniture Land hopes to have three physical stores in the US by next summer, Retail Week can reveal, as it ramps up its efforts to crack its new market.
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NewsToday in retail: Can Zalando take on Asos in the UK?
As Zalando continues to add to its proverbial armoury, the German etailer is marching ever closer to a frontline battle with its main fashion rival in the UK, Asos.
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NewsOak Furniture Land profits jump as it targets US market
Oak Furniture Land’s profits and sales advanced last year as the furniture retailer made its US debut.
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DataData: The UK’s top 30 retailers by productivity
Retail Week Prospect ranks the top 30 most productive retailers in the UK, measured by sales per employee.
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AnalysisAnalysis: Is momentum slowing in the furniture sector?
Compared with last year’s buoyant January Sales performance, the momentum appears to have slowed in the furniture sector.
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NewsThe top 10 fastest-growing retailers in the UK
Growth is the holy grail for retailers, particularly in a shifting trading landscape in which technology is transforming shopping habits.
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NewsOak Furniture Land boss eyes sale to boost US arm
Oak Furniture Land boss Jason Bannister is considering selling off a chunk of the furniture retailer he founded in 2004.
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VideoWatch: Oak Furniture Land boss on a fast-paced future
Oak Furniture Land boss Jason Bannister transformed the company from an Ebay seller to a retail park stalwart. His plans, however, don’t stop there.
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DataData: The top 30 retailers by the proportion of online sales
Retail Week’s ranking of the UK’s top 30 retailers by the proportion of online sales they generate sees Matchesfashion.com take top position.
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AnalysisAnalysis: The top 10 fastest-growing retailers in the UK, 2015
Our list of the fastest-growing retailers in the UK highlights businesses that have excelled at increasing profits in the past year.
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NewsStrong start for Dreams and Oak Furniture Land in January Sales
Furniture retailers’ January Sales have got off to an encouraging start as they carry the momentum they built up last year into 2015.
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NewsOak Furniture Land to open 57 sofa showrooms by Boxing Day
Oak Furniture Land will launch a sofa proposition by Boxing Day that will include 57 showrooms across the country.