Jacqueline Gold
OpinionJacqueline Gold: ‘We’ve put more family money into Ann Summers, but now I’m facing a CVA’
The Covid-19 pandemic has been an extraordinary time for all retailers. With all our stores closed at Ann Summers, the focus shifted to online, and thanks to the heroics of our colleagues, we managed to meet a significant step up in demand while people were in lockdown. I can’t imagine why…
OpinionJacqueline Gold: We won’t let landlords jeopardise our success
You don’t have to be the chief executive of a retailer to know there has been a fundamental shift in the retail property market.
OpinionJacqueline Gold: Why Ann Summers is taking on Google
Receiving the Retail Activist award at the Retail Week Awards last month was one of the proudest moments of my career.
OpinionOpinion: It's the beginning of the end for retail's dinosaurs
Last month I had the privilege of speaking at Retail Week’s Be Inspired conference. Our panel discussion – ‘working with dinosaurs: how to overcome unconscious bias’ – brought back some vivid memories of my formative years at Ann Summers.
OpinionOpinion: We have a higher purpose than just selling stuff
I’ve never felt truly comfortable with the expression “retail therapy”.
OpinionOpinion: Find the silver linings in the retail forecast
Someone once told me that one can either complain because rose bushes have thorns or rejoice because thorns have roses. It’s all about perspective.
OpinionOpinion: Stores need individual personality and a USP
A friend of mine popped out to Lidl the other day to buy some milk and returned delighted with their purchase of a foot pump and a two-metre-long, inflatable pink flamingo.
OpinionOpinion: Politicians could learn from retail
Whatever your perspective on the outcome of this year’s general election, I get the sense that many voters will have felt torn between policies, promises and people across the spectrum of political parties.
AnalysisOpinion: Tracking customer experiences can go too far
I read Next’s latest results with great interest, in particular, their open and detailed store portfolio review.
OpinionOpinion: There's no place for ‘locker-room banter’
Many people have made and continue to make negative assumptions when it comes to women in business.
OpinionOpinion: Nickolds' John Lewis appointment speaks volumes
The glass ceiling has been broken. A woman has the top job in the most influential organisation in our world.
OpinionOpinion: To increase retail sales, women need to be paid more
Whether you’re managing the budget for your stores or you’re figuring out budgets for a country, the key questions are broadly similar.
OpinionOpinion: Brexit will bring retail challenges but look for opportunities
I recently heard President Obama say that democracy requires compromise, even if you’re 100% right. That statement is obviously true.
OpinionJacqueline Gold: We must adapt or die in a fast-changing world
It’s been a bumper year for obituary writers and a bad one for celebrities – barely a week’s gone by without someone who entertained us passing away.
OpinionJacqueline Gold: Shortsighted Brexit backing is bad for business
Voting to leave the European Union in the upcoming referendum would force the next generation into an insular and isolationist stance.
OpinionOpinion: David Bowie offered retailers lessons in reinvention and innovation
The death of David Bowie – unexpected and too soon – had a profound impact on many of us, and highlights how perceptions can differ.
OpinionJacqueline Gold: Retailers should challenge the perception of Black Friday
Retailers have a responsibility to confront the cynicism surrounding promotional events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
NewsJacqueline Gold: Retailers need to learn lessons from the VW scandal
A couple of weeks ago we discovered that someone we liked and respected had cheated at their exams.
OpinionJacqueline Gold: Retailers have the influence to affect real social reform
You shouldn’t give power to people who want it too much. That goes for business as much as it does for the next leader of the Labour Party.
OpinionComment: Retailers should harness the potential of customer curiosity
Just as shy Tories helped the Conservatives during the general election, retailers should target shy shoppers.