A part of me hates smart phones. For one thing they turn nice normal people who you used to enjoy socialising with into annoying recluses who sit in the pub totally ignoring you while they poke people on Facebook and play Angry Birds. ... Read entry

"Quelle horreur. One of our last brilliant British retaliers [sic] Habitat has gone into administration. Part being bought by Homebase! OMG!" Thus tweets self-styled 'Queen of Shops' Mary Portas. ... Read entry

At a recent seminar I went to about building online communities, one of the speakers said that the best way to engage people through social media was to get them competing against each other. So if you had an online forum, introduce a star system so people who had made more posts had more stars under their names. ... Read entry

The Focus fallout has begun to reveal itself in earnest with the news that supplier Proteam has been forced into administration by the retailer's own woes.... Read entry

Journalists love numbers - especially big numbers. The fact that they are sometimes meaningless big numbers doesn't matter in the slightest. ... Read entry

I've just been taking a look at the amount of Google searches for Focus DIY over the last few years using Google Insight.... Read entry

There's no escaping the fact the catch all term 'home improvement' covers a very fragmented market. From DIY sheds, to cookshops, garden centres to grocers, everyone wants their slice of the home market. And, on the surface some products appear to have no relation whatsoever.... Read entry

It's official, the internet is changing. Or rather, the way people are using the internet is changing, so the internet needs to change. And it will, so don't let your website be one of those left behind. ... Read entry

In March I attended the BRC Multi-Channel Retail Conference in London to hear industry leaders share their knowledge of what is a rapidly-growing market.... Read entry

There can be very few people in the UK, and indeed in much of the rest of the world, who were unaware of the Royal Wedding last week.... Read entry