The Wolverhampton-based tiling chain has announced plans to expand its current range of 15 stores on the tail of a successful year of growth. 

DIY and garden giant Homebase bagged a Gold medal this year for its Teenage Cancer Trust garden designed by Joe Swift, while Westland's 80ft high Magical Odyssey was awarded a Silver-Gilt Flora and names Most Creative Show Garden of 2012. Meanwhile, Chelsea veteran Hillier achieved its 67th consecutive Gold medal for its very British themed Dual and the Crown exhibit.
 

Record rainfall during April and May means landscaping, turf and gardening businesses in the South and East of England are now exempt from the hosepipe ban for up to 28 days. 

New figures released by the Office for National Statistics show the sales volume for household goods retailers saw the biggest increase since January 2011, but retail overall suffered a 0.4% dip in April compared with the same time last year. 

The Old Railway Line Garden Centre in Powys, Wales, has recently installed a set of photovoltaic (PV) panels as part of its mass-redevelopment plan. 

UK Point of Sale is calling all independent retailers to make the most of the big events this summer through their window displays, promising an iPad to the best celebratory shop-front this July. 

JML partners with ITV to launch a new retail TV format called 'The Store with JML,' – a UK first on a mainstream channel where viewers can buy products. 

BHETA has partnered with Thomson Local Directories to give its members the chance to build databases specific to their requirements. 

...Yet 56% saw some improvement, albeit small, compared with the same period 12 months ago, according to a review of the shop vacancy rate during 2012's first quarter by the Local Data Company. 

According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), more than 35,000 members of retail staff suffered physical or verbal abuse last year, leading the retail association to publish a new guide on what is being done - and what more it thinks should be done - to tackle the problem. 

The British wallcovering brand, which celebrates its 125th anniversary this year, was sold to Erfurt MAV for an undisclosed sum last month. 

A pink rose created in the memory of a teenager who lost her life to cancer aged 19 is going on general sale for the first time in Homebase stores this week. 

DIY and hardware selling members of the British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) reported Q1 2012 sales were up by over 3% on Q1 2011, bettering the Q4 2011's +2.9% figure. 

The retail leg of Travis Perkins Plc, including Wickes and Tile Giant, revealed a like-for-like sales drop of 5.2% during the 17 weeks to April 30, but the figure was boosted to -2.6% when counting the newly-acquired Toolstation. 

The Garden Industry Manufacturers' Association (GIMA) is appealing to all suppliers of products which are sold, or could be sold, through any garden retail channels, DIY and/or hardware stores, builders merchants and garden centres to enter the 2012 awards. 

A customer who bought a kitchen table on the final day of Harvey's '8 Day Sale' in January complained to the ASA when the furniture retailer ran a further promotion offering an additional 10% off selected products the very next day. 

A Powys-based garden centre will be expanding this summer to help cope with the growing demand from retail and catering customers. 

Reacting to the Queen's speech, the director general of the British Retail Consortium Stephen Robertson said the outlined policies won't allow retailers to contribute effectively to economic growth. 

In what the business described as a "controversial decision", Beckworth Emporium in Mears Ashby has announced it will close its doors on Monday, June 4 and Tuesday, June 5 to allow staff to enjoy Diamond Jubilee festivities with family and friends. 

The two Home Retail Group businesses raised the landmark amount in just 21 months, smashing through their initial fundraising target of £2.5m for the group's official partner charity Teenage Cancer Trust.