Coffee-drinking rode out the recession, and its enduring popularity means new entrants to the market, such as Frank and Honest, have to find a new angle, writes Jonathan deBurca Butler

Full coverage formulas that feel feather-light is where foundation is at this season, says Rachel Marie Walsh.

No sooner had the UK embraced Black Friday than the American holiday shopping tradition looks to be on its way out.

Rita de Brun looks at our days and ways spent drinking coffee. Strong, hot, frothy or mild, we love the stuff — and now it appears, it loves us back.

IT’S the first warm day of spring and I’m having lunch outside with a handful of close friends.

They are a staple of most women’s wardrobes, yet two-thirds of us struggle to find the perfect pair of jeans. Deirdre Reynolds tests the latest, body-con pair to see how they shape up.

Online retailers are trying to cajole consumers into revealing their vital statistics with new sizing technology tailored to turn back a tide of returned garments that is hurting profits.

FASHION and feminism traditionally have little in common.

I spent my cash on bags, shoes and clothes. I’m a shopaholic but I’ve come ‘clean’ now, swears Katy Harrington

It’s now class to wear glass. More and more people are eyeing up the fashionable possibilities spectacles offer, says Deirdre Reynolds

Eco-aware and cost-conscious consumers increasingly consider zero waste packaging as a core purchasing driver, according to new Bord Bia analysis.

MORE than a quarter of Irish consumers have no disposable income each month after monthly bills are paid, a survey has found.

PACKAGING and branding could be as important as the use of fortifiers like Omega 3 and probiotics in influencing future dairy product sales in Europe, according to one leading industry expert.

DAIRY spread manufacturers have an opportunity to participate with food research specialists in exploiting new technology which is expected to produce nutritionally superior spreads and oils with an extended shelf-life.

THE retail market for fruit and vegetables fell by 3.1% in volume and 5.7% in value during the 12-week period ended June 14.

UNDER pressure shopping centres will have to devise marking strategies to keep consumers coming through their doors during this period of sharp economic slowdown.

FEW consumers are likely to have been surprised by the latest statistics indicating a slowdown in the economic market.

UK sofa firm Land of Leather was today hit with a £210,000 (€266,000) fine by a finance watchdog for putting thousands of customers at risk from lax controls over the selling of payment protection insurance (PPI).

THOSE seeking the best value while on holiday this year should head for Thailand and avoid Europe and Australia at all costs, according to a survey.

Black and Asian women in the UK are not being adequately catered for by the beauty industry, a report out today says.

IRISH consumers in denial about their debt-fuelled credit card lifestyles are on course to rack up over €3 billion in debt this Christmas.

Mayonnaise is firmly ahead of salad cream as the nation’s top choice of dressing, figures today show.

IRISH women spend more than €70 each, every year on beauty products from blusher to lipstick in a market worth €112 million annually.

Lager is suffering a popularity dip in the UK as drinkers choose more “sophisticated” alternatives, a report out today says.

Herbal and homeopathic remedies are shrugging off their hippy image and hitting the mainstream, sales figures out today suggest.

Sales of anti-smoking aids in the UK are set to break through the £100m (€149m) mark this year, a report out today says.

The likely private equity takeover of Alliance Boots will probably lead to “opportunistic financial rape”, a retail expert has said.

HEALTH, finances and crime are the biggest concerns facing Irish people, according to a survey, which could give political parties some vital clues on policy priorities for the election.

Health, money and crime are the main issues of concern for Irish adults, according to a new survey being published today.

SUBWAY, the fast-food sandwich chain, has overtaken KFC, Pizza Hut and even Burger King in terms of store numbers in Ireland and Britain combined, according to analysis company Mintel’s latest ‘Sandwiches Market Intelligence Report’.

Parents keen to capture their children on film are boosting sales of video cameras, new research shows.

IF you’re a man and you want to find happiness and wealth then stay single.

Single and middle-aged men are the happiest in Ireland, a new survey claimed today.

Retailers are gearing up for Britain's first civil partnerships with new “gay marriage” products.

Almost half of all consumers in Northern Ireland believe debt is acceptable, it emerged today.

Many Irish consumers are cutting back on spending due to the increasing cost of living, according to a study carried out by the market research firm Mintel.

Swedish group Hennes & Mauritz is set to topple struggling Marks & Spencer as Europe’s biggest clothing retailer, experts predicted today.

UK photographic specialist Jessops - which is today opening a new retail outlet in Dublin - was forced to cut its flotation price in London today amid tough stock market conditions.

CONVENIENCE stores are leading the transformation of the retailing sector, according to a report published yesterday.

DATA released today suggests more than half the population is overweight or obese, while the family meal is becoming a thing of the past.

IRISH people carried out €8.5 billion worth of credit card transactions in 2001, as the appetite for debt and the plastic card continued to boom.