Asda returns to sales growth as price cuts kick in May 15, 2014 SUPERMARKET giant Asda said yesterday it had returned to underlying sales growth in its first quarter as price-cuts started to attract thrifty shoppers. Asda, which trails market leader Tesco by annual sales and is vying with Sainsbury’s to be the UK’s no2 grocer, said like-for-like sales rose 0.1 per cent in the 15 weeks to [...]
Deutsche Bank employees take up a week of super scrimping April 28, 2014 IT’S HARD to imagine banking staff wondering if they can afford to splash out on a plain bagel from Sainsbury’s, but that could well be the experience of 43 Deutsche Bank employees this week as they try to live on £1 per day for five days. The scrimping isn’t anything to do with cost cutting, [...]
Big four grocers all lose ground to discounters April 9, 2014 BRITAIN’S four biggest supermarket groups all lost market share over the last three months to German discounters Aldi and Lidl, with Sainsbury’s suffering the biggest drop in market share in ten years. Sainsbury’s has until this month been the only one of the big four to resist the pressure of the discounters and hold onto [...]
Big four grocers all lose ground to discounters April 8, 2014 BRITAIN’S four biggest supermarket groups all lost market share over the last three months to German discounters Aldi and Lidl, with Sainsbury’s suffering the biggest drop in market share in ten years. Sainsbury’s has until this month been the only one of the big four to resist the pressure of the discounters and hold onto [...]
After share price crash Asos warns on profits and investors slam Morrisons June 5, 2014 SOME of Britain’s biggest retailers were left reeling yesterday after a profits warning from Asos spooked investors and supermarket bosses came under a fierce verbal attack from angry shareholders. Asos shares crashed 31 per cent, wiping £1.2bn off its market value, after the online fashion retailer warned that a strong pound and a rise in [...]
What you need to know before the open May 7, 2014 With the situation in Ukraine deteriorating, global markets are finding it difficult to push higher. The improvement in economic data from Europe yesterday was paired with the OECD slashing its forecast for the Russian economy. And that’s been followed this morning with some less-than-impressive services data for China, which makes it look less likely the [...]
The harmful myths of management June 18, 2014 Commonplace truisms are often wrong – leaders don’t need bags of charisma There’s a common tendency to oversimplify management. Books with titles like The Ten Secrets of Successful Managers imply that the art of leading a team can be boiled down to a series of neat aphorisms: “always delegate”, or “lead from the front”. [...]
Bottom Line: Price wars can come and go but real estate is permanent March 10, 2014 FOUR pints of milk and a warehouse near Stockton-on-Tees, please. Morrisons’ latest special offers will be welcomed by shoppers and property buyers alike, though the latter have a bit longer to enjoy the spoils of the investment. Cutting the price of everyday groceries doesn’t look like a sustainable strategy on its own for Morrisons, with [...]
Analysts fear for Morrisons as sales plunge 7.1pc May 8, 2014 Morrisons has reported a 7.1 per cent drop in like-for-like sales in the 13 weeks to 4 May. That’s considerably worse than expected – and worse than the 5.6 per cent fall it saw over the festive season. Jefferies had forecast a seven per cent decline, whereas Barclays was predicting one of 6.3 per cent. [...]
Strong results for meat supplier Cranswick as pig rearing grows April 7, 2014 SAUSAGE maker Cranswick has bucked tough conditions in the grocery market and record pig prices to post strong fourth quarter results yesterday. The FTSE 250 firm, which supplies supermarkets including Sainsbury’s with upmarket sausages and cooked meats, said underlying sales excluding acquisitions were up 12 per cent in the year to 31 March. Analysts forecast [...]