Your commercial news round-up: Co-op cyberattack, YouTubers, Ticketmaster investigation, seized Labubu dolls

The Co-op has revealed an £80 million profit hit following a major cyberattack, while YouTube creators are being hailed as "trailblazers” after contributing £2.2 billion to the UK economy last year. Meanwhile, Ticketmaster is under pressure to amend its pricing practices after Oasis fans backlash, and Labubu dolls are flooding UK borders and sparking serious safety concerns. Read on for this week’s top commercial stories making headlines!

• The Co-op has reported an £80 million drop in profits following a “malicious” cyberattack earlier this year, which disrupted operations and led to gaps on store shelves and service interruptions at its funeral parlours. The attack, which was discovered in April, forced the retailer to shut down parts of its IT systems, resulting in an estimated £206 million revenue loss. The group now anticipates a £120 million full-year profit impact. The Co-op’s CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq commented: “The cyber-attack highlighted many of our strengths. But more importantly, it also highlighted areas we need to focus on […] We’ve already started on this journey, refining our member and customer proposition, making structural changes to our business, and setting our Co-op up for long-term success.” Despite ongoing cyber-related challenges, the Manchester-based retailer plans to open 30 new stores, including food shops and franchise stores.
   
• YouTube content creators added £2.2 billion to the UK economy in 2024 and supported 45,000 jobs, according to a report by Oxford Economics. This comes with the launch of a new all-party parliamentary group (APPG), which represents UK creators and influencers. Popular fitness influencer Lilly Sabri welcomed the move and said: “For many years people have questioned whether being a content creator is a real job, and whether you can actually build a sustainable career from it […] without YouTube I wouldn't be where I am today and I wouldn't have launched these businesses and employed as many people as I do." Labour MP and co-chair of the APPG, Feryal Clark, called creators “trailblazers of a new creative revolution” and said: "This new cross-party forum will put that right: tearing down the barriers that stifle talent, championing creators as pioneers of our time, and making sure Britain leads the world as the ultimate home of creativity, innovation and ambition." Despite APPGs being informal, they can offer industry insights directly to policymakers.
   
• Ticketmaster has agreed to change how it advertises concert tickets following a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation sparked by fan outrage over Oasis reunion tour pricing. Fans of the Mancunian rock group complained about how tickets for the band were advertised and priced. Ticket prices were initially advertised at £148.50 but by the time eager fans reached the front of the online queues, they were presented with much higher prices (more than £350 in some cases). The CMA found no evidence of Ticketmaster using dynamic pricing but criticised the company for “misleading” labels on tickets. Under new commitments, Ticketmaster must clearly disclose tiered pricing 24 hours in advance, improve transparency during online queues and stop using labels that suggest one ticket is better than another. CEO of the CMA, Sarah Cardell, said: “Fans who spend their hard-earned money to see artists they love deserve to see clear, accurate information, upfront. If Ticketmaster fails to deliver on these changes, we won’t hesitate to take further action.”
   
• Labubu dolls accounted for 90% of the £3.5 million worth of counterfeit toys seized at UK borders in 2025, according to Home Office data. Of the 259,000 fake toys seized by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), around 236,000 were Labubu knock-offs. Despite being marketed as adult collectibles, the toys are widely popular among children. However, this is a concern as nearly three in four seized items failed safety tests, with many containing harmful chemicals or posing choking hazards. The IPO has launched a campaign called ‘Fake Toys, Real Harms’ to raise awareness of the risks. It found that 70% of buyers were driven by price, while only 27% considered safety. In addition, nearly half of fake toy purchasers reported issues ranging from breakage and toxic smells to illness in children. The IPO said experts believe the Labubu craze is “just the tip of the iceberg” and the government body’s deputy director of enforcement, Helen Burnham, stated: "Child safety must come first, so we're urging parents – please don't let your child be the tester."

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