News roundup--Pumpkin Patch, Mulberry, more

New Zealand-based childrenswear retailer/cataloguer Pumpkin Patch has said it will shut its 20 US stores to focus on its wholesale and online business in that market. In the UK, Pumpkin Patch is looking to renegotiate rent rates with its landlords to combat EBIT losses. If an agreement cannot be reached, up to 12 underperforming stores could close. As result of this restructuring, Pumpkin Patch expects net profit after tax but before reorganisation costs to be between NZ$12 million and NZ$14 million (£6 million to £7 million), compared with a top-end estimation of NZ$18 million (£9 million), forecast in January.

Revenues at British handbag brand Mulberry jumped 69 percent to £121.6 million in the year ended 31st March. Pretax profit soared by 358 percent to £23.3 million.

Ann Summers is using software from RichRelevance to personalise customer recommendations on its website. Using the recommendation engine, Ann Summers will be able to use the data gathered on web visitors to present them with products or categories that match their online behaviour patterns. 

Rugged Ways, a Yorkshire-based retailer of outdoor apparel, has gone live with its first website. The site, designed and built by Ascensor, integrates with SecureTrading for payment processing.