I was too optimistic recently in saying next year would be a bigger challenge for retailers than this one, because this week Stead & Simpson announced the closure of 90 of its 227 stores, and then came news HMV was also in dire straits.

Forget the LBD. This winter, party dresses are purple-hued and sparkly

Topshop and Topman were today valued at a staggering £2 billion after retail tycoon Sir Philip Green sold a 25 per cent stake in the fashion brands.

If you splash out on one thing for yourself before Christmas,  make it a winter warmer

Main image: sunglasses, £150, Henry Holland; watermelon necklace, £85, Browns; frame, £5, John Lewis

What we love, we're not sure about, we're buying and can't wait for...

From top, clockwise: Extra dimension skinfinish in superb £21.50, MAC, available nationwide

Menswear favourite Burton mixes things up by taking on a new student designer. Rebecca Gonsalves reports

Stock up on fitting footwear to fend off the chills

Man About Town

We love… Simply charming

One is the grande dame of the high street, a reliable mainstay of the retail world that first opened its doors in 1909. The other is a family whose international fame began in 2007 when one of its members was featured in one of the most successful sex tapes of all time.

You may not be reality-TV royalty but you can dress like it, as the Kardashian Kollection arrives on our shores, says Gemma Hayward