Following its support of the ban on ash imports in the wake of the Chalara fraxinea outbreak, the Horticultural Trades Association has met with Lord de Mauley at Defra to highlight industry concerns. 

Tool manufacturer Irwin has become the latest big industry name sponsor of the DIY Week Awards 2012, sticking to its roots with the sponsorship of the Tool Retailer of the Year category. 

Homebase has told diyweek.net that it will be investing in improvements to its website next year after it was ranked near the bottom of a survey of shopping sites. 

...But retailers are noticeably absent from the list of those who pledge to pay staff more than £7.45 an hour. 

Average transaction values were down 2.4% "as customers switched purchases between product categories" at Grafton Group-owned Irish retailer Woodie's DIY during the 10 months to October 31, 2012. 

Next's plans to build a new Home and Garden superstore in Sheffield were thwarted this week when Sheffield City Council refused planning permission for the development. 

As pet retailer Pets at Home revealed a 7% sales increase (up 1.3% LfL) for the 52 weeks ending March 31, 2012, bringing its turnover to £544.3m, ceo Nick Wood has hinted that LfL revenue has increased even further for the year to October 11, 2012. 

Lake District hardware shops Middletons of Kendal and Musgraves of Windermere have both recently taken on the Home Hardware identity. 

Exactly four months after its 2012 show, organisers of Exclusively Housewares have published the full exhibitor list for 2013 - the second year running the show has sold all its spaces in so little time. 

Hopes of a retail revival, raised by September's better figures, have been dashed by new statistics revealing disappointing footfall and poor sales in October. 

With just three months to go before the 2013 Totally shows open, online registration has now gone live. 

Last week's rumours that electrical chain Comet was on the verge of collapse were confirmed on Friday when it called in the administrators. 

Following the sudden departure of Nicholas Marshall, The garden Centre Group has announced the appointment of Kevin Bradshaw as ceo and Nils Steinmeyer as cfo to help drive change and bring GCG "in line with Terra Firma's plans" 

Wayfair, the United States' largest online retailer of homewares and home furnishings, has chalked up £20m of sales in its first year of UK trading from wayfair.co.uk. 

Further success for buying group, as it adds three new shops, bringing its total membership to 63 throughout Scotland and the North of England. 

Burdens, a supplier of utility and civil engineering products, has sold part of its business to builders merchant Wolseley. 

A Somerset garden centre will re-open tomorrow, November 3, six weeks after a devastating flood caused the business to shut down. 

A record number of over 1.3m Christmas brochures and leaflets has been ordered by Home Hardware retailers. 

Following its half-yearly results, in which Homebase saw a like-for-like sales drop of 6.2%, Home Retail Group has announced it will be closing up to five stores before the end of the current financial year, and has no plans to open any new ones. 

Which? has successfully defended itself against a viewer who complained to the ad watchdog about its television advertisement.