Black Friday is dead, long live Black Friday!

I promised I wouldn’t mention Black Friday again until solid stats came through next week. But with new info coming fast, I’ve relented. There are several points I’m finding interesting about it in the UK and they’re quite contradictory – just as it becomes the most popular shopping day for bargain-hunting Brits, it’s also becoming obsolete. Confused?

Idris Elba Superdry launch blocks Regent Street

Say what you like about celebrity fashion ranges but there’s one thing you can’t fault about them – they really get people excited, not only about buying fashion, but also about queuing for hours in the cold to buy it. I had trouble negotiating my way down Regent Street, London, this afternoon. The queues for the Idris Elba collection launch spread down and across the street outside Superdry’s flagship store.

Billabong: badly battered but bullish

“Short-term turbulence” is what Billabong’s CEO is calling it. But investors saw it differently. The surfwear specialist gave a trading update and the news wasn’t good. So what did CEO Neil Fiske have to say (and bear in mind that with the share price plunging 23% it must have been pretty bad)?