What: El Corte Inglés is extending its 2025-2030 Sustainability Plan from waste and circularity into product sourcing, with quantified goals for organic food, raw-material traceability and certified sustainable fishing.

Why it is important: Quantified targets — 30% organic in Nutrición y Bienestar, 25% in baby products, +3% MSC/ASC-certified fish — give members a concrete benchmark for how far product-level sustainability commitments can go in food retail.

El Corte Inglés is incorporating environmental and social criteria into its general-consumption offer — food, personal care and home — under its 2025-2030 Sustainability Plan. The company has set measurable goals for organic food: at least 30% of Nutrición y Bienestar references and 25% of baby products are to carry organic certification, building on an existing range of certified fresh produce, dairy, oils and infant food.

On traceability, El Corte Inglés markets private-label products with 100% Spanish origin and is developing due-diligence mechanisms to trace raw materials including coffee, cocoa, soy, wood and cattle. Local sourcing is framed as both a support to regional producers and a way to cut transport-related emissions.

For fish, the retailer — the first Spanish distributor to hold MSC and ASC chain-of-custody certification for fresh fish, now present at over 180 counters — aims to raise MSC/ASC-certified fresh fish supply by at least 3%, keep certified aquaculture above 60% of the total, and extend certification to frozen fish, canned goods and other seafood products.

In home and personal care, the group is expanding its range of cellulose and wood-based products from responsibly managed forests, certified FSC and PEFC, alongside circular-economy programmes for textile recycling and refurbished goods.

IADS Notes: These sustainability targets build on a broader pattern of circular-economy execution at El Corte Inglés. Control Publicidad (August 2026) reported that the group had already achieved 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable packaging in its food areas, cut plastic packaging use by 8.9% versus 2024, and raised recycled content to 33.5%, alongside a textile-collection partnership with Moda re- that gathered more than 630 tonnes of material. A Press Release (July 2026) confirmed the completion of the group's Zero Waste road map, with AENOR certification across all department stores, food formats, outlets and logistics platforms in Spain and Portugal, recovering more than 100,000 tonnes of waste and avoiding over 61,000 tonnes of CO₂e emissions. Read together, the traceability and certified-sourcing targets described here extend that operating model upstream, from waste and packaging management into raw-material origin and supply-chain governance.

El Corte Inglés expands its commitment to sustainable, local and traceable products

What: Luis E. Miguel Siman has been appointed CEO of Almacenes Siman and Prisma Moda, effective September 1st, succeeding into leadership after 14 years with the organization.

Why it is important: It signals continuity for a long-standing IADS member group as it enters a new leadership chapter across its department store and fashion formats.

Almacenes Siman and Prisma Moda have named Luis E. Miguel Siman as their new Chief Executive Officer, with the appointment taking effect on September 1st. Siman joins the role after 14 years within the organization, during which he held several senior leadership positions and contributed directly to the group's growth and transformation across its retail and fashion operations.

The appointment was announced by the group's leadership as a vote of confidence in Siman's experience and deep familiarity with the business, positioning him to build on the foundations established by previous leadership. The transition is presented as a natural evolution rather than a rupture, with continuity in strategic direction expected across both the department store and fashion divisions represented by Prisma Moda.

The announcement also reaffirmed the company's commitment to its partners, expressing appreciation for their ongoing trust and support, and signaling an intention to deepen collaboration going forward. Framed as the opening of a new chapter, the transition underscores a succession model built on internal promotion and long institutional tenure — a pattern increasingly visible among family-controlled department store groups managing generational and executive renewal.

IADS Notes: Leadership renewal at Almacenes Siman follows a pattern visible elsewhere among family-controlled department store groups. At El Palacio de Hierro, a series of 2026 executive appointments was framed explicitly around succession planning and the adoption of international best practices (Fashion Network, June 2026). The broader case for internal, family-anchored succession is reinforced by an analysis contrasting the debt-driven collapse of Saks Global with the comparative resilience of family-led and founder-driven retailers, whose leadership incentives remain aligned with long-term brand stewardship (The Robin Report, March 2026). A closer parallel in structure is Chalhoub Group's generational transition to Michael Chalhoub, which paired continuity with expansion ambitions explicitly naming Latin America as a target market (The National, January 2026). A comparable sibling-to-sibling handover took place at El Corte Inglés, presented by the group as a stable, orderly succession preserving strategic direction (Fashion Network, November 2025).

Almacenes Siman appoints Luis E. Miguel Siman as new CEO

What: John Lewis’s leadership change and Harvey Nichols’ sale to Frasers highlight the mounting pressure on UK department stores to modernise, differentiate and fund large-scale transformation.

Why it is important: The contrast between John Lewis’s investment-led turnaround and Harvey Nichols’ distressed sale illustrates how uneven the sector’s recovery has become.

A difficult week for UK department stores exposed the sector’s widening divide. John Lewis announced the departure of department stores boss Peter Ruis, who had led store renovations, revived “Never Knowingly Undersold” and brought in high-profile partnerships such as Topshop, Waterstones and Jamie Oliver. Although John Lewis says the business is on a stronger footing, the timing of his exit raised questions about leadership stability, trading pressure and future strategy. Days later, Harvey Nichols was bought out of administration by Frasers Group after years of losses and declining relevance. The two developments underline the structural challenges facing department stores: large and costly estates, high business rates, online competition, shifting category demand and the need for constant reinvention. While John Lewis is still pursuing an investment-led turnaround through curation, services and omnichannel growth, Harvey Nichols’ distressed sale shows what can happen when capital, differentiation and strategic clarity fall short.

IADS Notes: The pressure on UK department stores is visible in the simultaneous leadership change at John Lewis and the distressed sale of Harvey Nichols to Frasers Group. Fashion Network (August 2026) directly covers Peter Ruis’s departure and Will Kernan’s succession, while Press Release (June 2026) shows that John Lewis is still investing heavily through a £50m store transformation drive within its wider £800m modernisation plan. Fashion Network (November 2025), Retail Gazette (August 2025) and Press Release (September 2025) document the progress made under Ruis, including a shift from closures to growth, 100 new premium fashion brands, exclusive collaborations and the Topshop partnership. Retail Week (August 2025) provides broader context, arguing that department stores remain relevant when they combine service, curation, omnichannel capability and experiential retail. Yet Financial Times (April 2026) shows how legacy leases and click-and-collect disputes expose the financial and legal strain of large store estates. On the luxury side, Financial Times (June and August 2026), Forbes (July 2026), Fashion Network (July 2026) and BoF (August 2026) trace Harvey Nichols’ path from sale review to “death spiral” warning and pre-pack acquisition by Frasers. Fashion Network (March 2026) adds that Frasers is already repositioning House of Fraser stores into more curated, experiential and digitally integrated formats. Together, these sources show that UK department stores are at a strategic crossroads: those with capital, clear curation and operational discipline may still reinvent themselves, while weaker players risk consolidation, downsizing or insolvency.

Where now for John Lewis as boss exits?