Colder temperatures and the January sales drove shoppers back to the high street last month “as retailers rejoiced a recovery from early winter’s grim trading”, writes The Telegraph. Shoppers’ footfall in January rose by 1.2% on a year ago, compared to the 2.2% slide in December, according to figures by the British Retail Consortium and Springboard. The three main kinds of retail destinations - the high street, retail parks and out of town centres - posted an uptick in shopper numbers reporting a rise in footfall, the first time this has happened in more than five years. (The Telegraph)

The Sunday Times (£) looks at the pay of Ocado’s leadership team, writing: “Payouts from the executive bonus scheme seem to arrive like clockwork. Even after they leave.” It notes that Jason Gissing, a former Goldman Sachs banker who co-founded Ocado, has received a bumper payout from the long-term plan. Despite retiring from the board in May 2014, he collected £3.7m in bonus stock last year. (The Sunday Times £)

Tesco is being sued by a property developer over a breach of competition law that stops rival retailers from building stores near one of its supermarkets. High Peak Developments served Tesco with legal papers last Friday. The developer is claiming that the supermarket is acting illegally by refusing to release a restrictive covenant on land surrounding a Tesco store at Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire. (The Telegraph)

A business that counts Sir Terry Leahy among its directors has raised £1 million through crowdfunding. Houseology plans to use the money to export more of its online interior design products to countries including Australia, the United States and continental Europe, as well as targeting additional corporate customers. (The Times £)

Meanwhile, Leahy has warned against ‘blaming too much on Europe’ and said most business red tape was created in Britain. Leahy told The Mail on Sunday: ‘There is a slight danger that you can blame too much on Europe. Most of the regulation, most of the bureaucracy, lies within Britain. We’re not going to become the Singapore of Europe overnight just because we leave the EU.’ (The Daily Mail)

The Times (£) suggests there is unease over Waitorse MD Mark Price’s new government role. “With the UK trade deficit in goods widening to a record £125 billion, there are concerns about whether Mark Price is capable of taking over from Lord Maude of Horsham, a political heavyweight, as minister for trade and investment.” (The Times £)

The weekend papers also looked at Aldi’s price blitz at the end of last week. The Times (£) said: “Aldi declared all-out war on its grocery rivals yesterday as it pledged to be the “cheapest for ever” in Britain”, while The Telegraph said: “Aldi has warned its supermarket rivals that they will not be able to match it on price”. However, The Guardian reported: “Aldi’s latest promotional campaign has been called misleading and disingenuous” as it compares branded prices with its own label offerings.

The family founders of discount chain 99p Stores will make less money than was expected from last year’s £55m takeover by Poundland after losses swelled to £11m in the last year of the retailer’s independence. (The Telegraph)

Some of Asia’s biggest soda-guzzling nations are preparing to impose taxes on fizzy drinks, following similar moves in France, certain US states and Mexico. (The Financial Times £)

Pizza Hut’s British restaurants have been put on the block at £150m — four years after the chain nearly went into administration. Rutland Partners, the owner of Pizza Hut UK, has hired advisers at PwC to find buyers, City sources said. (The Sunday Times £)

The Times has an interview with the entrepreneur behind Hotel Chocolat, in which Angus Thirlwell says he hopes that Valentine’s Day sales will help to kick-off a momentous 12 months for the group. (The Times £)

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