Philippe Brocart has stepped down as managing director of SAFI, which organizes the Maison&Objet trade show scheduled to kick off on Thursday, March 24. Philippe Delhomme acts as interim director.

​Hermès was the latest luxury group to signal a strong recovery on Friday with the French firm’s Q4 and full-year sales highlighting the resilience of the biggest global luxury names both during and after the pandemic.

​Next is to open a department store in all but name as it transforms its existing sites in the Atria centre in Watford and also adds a Victoria’s Secret, the lingerie brand for which it holds the UK licence.

​It’s official — Thailand’s Central and Austria’s Signa are buying Selfridges Group from the Weston family. The transaction “will create one of the world’s leading omnichannel luxury department store groups”.

On Friday, luxury crystalware producer Baccarat announced the appointment of Margareth Henriquez, the CEO of Krug Champagne since 2009, as its new managing director effective April 1 2022.

Fast-expanding retailer Next delivered a Q3 trading update on Wednesday and brief though it was, it showed how the business continues to be one of the most successful and best-run in the UK fashion sector. 

The rain from the Bay of Biscay may have engulfed the City of Light, but the mood was sunny and optimistic at Isabel Marant and Leonard, quietly confident at Moynat and effervescent at Baccarat.

Dior went into full court press in the first 48 hours of Paris Fashion Week – unveiling its new Cheval Blanc spa, feting its Dior Home and Kids creator Cordelia de Castellane, and unveiling a Miss Dior floral pop-up. 

​H&M has opened the doors of its first standalone store for its growing H&M Home concept with a debut in Paris at 14, boulevard de Capucines.

​There was some good news coming out of Marks & Spencer for once on Friday as it upgraded its profit outlook after shoppers went online to buy more of its revamped clothing offer and also bought plenty of its foods.

​Hermès became the latest luxury group to announce a rebound on Friday as the upscale leather goods and fashion maker saw its sales soaring during Q2 and the first half as a whole.

​Hermès reopened its via Montenapoleone store in Milan on July 9 and said it starts a “a new chapter in the history that has linked Italy to the French house since 1987”.

Fashion e-tailer N Brown has delivered full-year results for the period to the end of February and it's no surprise that they were weaker than the previous financial year. But the company seemed upbeat for the future.

​M&S has unveiled a major realignment of its senior leadership team with CEO Steve Rowe making the changes after saying the firm has finished the ‘Fixing the Basics’ part of its strategy and is ready for the next step.

Arthur Beale, one of the oldest stores in London, is to close permanently next month. The storied yacht chandler on Shaftesbury Avenue, adjacent to Covent Garden, is to shut its doors after 150 years in the location.

​John Lewis unveils its revamped Edinburgh store on Friday after a major refurbishment. The focus is on making the store a must-visit destination, with experiences and expertise that can’t be replicated online.