London — After a year to forget for British retailers, investors are betting some of the UK’s major chains now face a make-or-break holiday shopping season. Among those with the most at stake are department-store operators Debenhams and House of Fraser, as well as fashion retailer New Look Retail Group, owned by embattled billionaire Christo Wiese. Despite Black Friday promotions having been spread over two weeks in November, all three retailers are among the few still discounting by as much as 50%. There was widespread snowfall across the UK during the weekend of December 9-10, causing a 9.1% drop in the number of shoppers at British retail destinations, according to researcher Springboard, leaving retailers hoping for a glut of pent-up demand to materialise before Christmas. That’s adding to the strain wrought by soaring labour and sourcing costs exacerbated by the Brexit-induced weakness of the pound, as well as a squeeze on Britons’ disposable incomes. In November, Next CEO Simo...
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