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Decathlon shops at IKEA for new CEO

Sports retail chain Decathlon has appointed Barbara Martin Coppola as CEO. The new CEO has been in charge of the digital transformation at Ikea over the past years.

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American fund wants to acquire Dutch bicycle giant

The American investment fund KKR has offered 1.6 billion euros for Accell Group, the Dutch bicycle manufacturer which owns well-known brands such as Batavus, Koga, Raleigh and Sparta.

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Belgium bans plastic cotton buds and tableware

As of today, the sale of various single-use plastic products, such as cutlery, cotton buds and straws, will no longer be allowed in Belgium.

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Two offers for Kohl's department store chain

The American department store chain Kohl's is on the radar of two potential buyers. A consortium supported by the activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP and investor Sycamore Partners are reportedly both interested.

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Reviews on most webshops are fake or unreliable

Fake or misleading reviews are everywhere: nearly three-quarters of European websites violate the rules with unreliable, or in any case questionable, reviews. The European Union want to crack down on the issue.

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Veepee wants second hand on new platform

Flash sale specialist Veepee has a new webshop: all users across Europe will encounter the same platform from now on. In the future, a platform for second-hand sales should be incorporated.

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Action opens milestone 2000th store

Dutch non-food discounter Action has reached an enormous milestone, by opening its 2000th store in Prague. Further expansion, to a tenth country, is coming soon.

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Bol.com launches French-language website

Ahold Delhaize subsidiary Bol.com has launched a French-language version of its website and is increasing the number of local sellers, to fuel its Belgian offensive. Until now, Bol.com was only available in French through an app.

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Walmart wants its own cryptocurrency and NFTs

Walmart, too, is preparing itself for the metaverse: the American retail giant wants to launch its own cryptocurrency and sell virtual products as NFTs. It has made seven trademark applications to enable this.

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Selfridges sells art, NFTs and fashion through unique collaboration

How can retailers respond to the NFT hype? Selfridges has the answer: it is the first physical retailer to sell NFTs: in this case, digital editions of the optical illusion art by Hungarian artist Victor Vasarely.

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Friends of the Earth Netherlands is also going after food companies

The Dutch branch of Friends of the Earth (also known as Milieudefensie) is giving 29 large companies, including Ahold Delhaize, FrieslandCampina and Unilever, three months to present a well-developed and viable climate plan. If they fail to do so, the Dutch climate organisation threatens with lawsuits.

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EU counters sales fraud with reference price

A European directive should protect customers better against 'sales fraud', the artificial raising of prices just before a discount is calculated. Any discount shall have to be compared to a 'reference price', being the lowest price the product has been on sale for in the latest thirty days.

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Ochama opens first robot stores in the Netherlands

Ochama has arrived in the Netherlands: the subsidiary of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com has opened its webshop and two robot pick-up points today, with a month's delay.

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What is an NFT and how do you turn something virtual into retail?

What does one possess when they pay over 27,000 euros for an 'NFT' of a secret sauce recipe? And what exactly are these NFTs? But above all: what can retailers and brands do with them?

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