John Hargreaves, the founder of Matalan, has acquired Fenn Wright Manson, the womenswear retailer, out of administration.

A man today admitted starting a massive fire which destroyed a family-run furniture shop during the riots last year.

The furniture chain Lombok went into administration yesterday in a move resulting in the closure of nine stores.

House of Fraser, the department store group, has posted a sharp rise in annual profits and issued a £250m bond to give it a cheaper debt structure and free up cashflow to invest in the business.

Easter weekend is always a great time for bargain hunters and this year looks set to be no exception. Several major retailers are hosting sales including House of Fraser, Halfords and, perhaps more predictably, Thorntons the chocolatier. Thorntons's offer is three-for-two on Easter gifts plus a free box of chocolates worth £13.99 with all orders over £20 when using the discount code EA44. Meanwhile, both House of Fraser and Halfords have up to 50 per cent off dozens of items in store and online. The produce they sell may be entirely different but both retailers are clearly using the bank holiday spirit to attract new customers to their stores.

High street fashion chain All Saints has been put up for sale with price tag worth a potential £140 million, it was reported today.

Department store House of Fraser has beaten rival John Lewis by posting an 8.5 per cent rise in underlying sales over the festive period – the second year running it has broken records.