Retailers ‘must act to lose their toxic reputation’

RETAILERS are held in lower esteem than bankers... and only slightly higher than estate agents and politicians, former Co-op boss Richard Pennycook has said.

He told the British Retail Consortium’s annual lecture that retail has developed a “toxic” reputation, and this was not just due to high-profile scandals.

“We can either pretend that it’s an issue about Philip Green and Mike Ashley, or we can recognise that it’s an issue for all of us,” he said. According to Retail Week, Pennycook added that retailers should “talk about the right things in our communities and with government”, highlighting the gig economy, retail taxation and a “breakdown” between business and consumers over pricing promises as areas to address.

He said: “Will we talk about the wrong things, or the right things? As representatives of the business community, we have an obligation to lead the agenda for better governance and the restoration of trust in business... where we see working practices that we can exploit for a bit of competitive gain, despite knowing in our gut that they are wrong, we should call it out.”

He urged action “when things are happening that just ain’t right”. @SimonEngStand