Debenhams share price slips ahead of market update this week January 7, 2019 Shares in troubled department store Debenhams slipped three per cent today ahead of a trading update on Thursday when it will reveal how it fared over Christmas. The retailer, which has its annual general meeting on Thursday, has seen its share price tank this year, falling from 30p 12 months ago to just 5.5p today. There was [...]
Majestic Wine ‘in advanced talks’ over sale of retail arm June 13, 2019 Majestic Wine announced it was in advanced talks with multiple bidders over the sale of 200 stores as it focuses on its online business. The company plans to spin off the Majestic Retail and Commercial arm and focus on its Naked Wines brand, which has a “greater potential for growth”. The figures In the year [...]
How to write a lockdown novel – from a man who did just that November 4, 2020 Thierry Macquet, a Mauritian ex-at living in London, found himself stranded on the paradise island of his childhood when coronavirus rampaged across the globe. To stay sane, he decided to write a lockdown novel, Messages From an Adventurous Ancestor. Here’s how he did it, and some advice on how you can do the same as [...]
Business as usual: Mid-tier firms predict rapid recovery after vaccine rollout November 30, 2020 The vast majority (94%) of mid-sized businesses in the UK believe they will fully recover from Covid-19 within a year if a vaccine is made available. More than two-thirds of mid-tier businesses – those with revenue of between £10m and £300m – think they will be fully recovered in just six months, according to new [...]
More customers leave TSB than any other bank, data shows January 30, 2019 More customers abandoned TSB in the third quarter of last year than any other bank, according to the latest data, while Nationwide gained the most new accounts. TSB, which suffered two major IT outages in 2018, saw net losses of 16,142, followed by Natwest which lost 12,514 accounts overall. A total of 40, 656 customers moved their [...]
Calls for a circuit breaker are out of date, misguided, and not grounded in science October 20, 2020 The politicians supporting a circuit breaker lockdown, like the one due to come into effect in Wales on Friday, say they are “following the science”. They appear to be referring to a Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) document dated 21 September. If so, it’s science, Jim, but not as hard as we know it. [...]
B&M maintains strong growth as sales pass £1bn during lockdown July 1, 2020 B&M European Value Retail hailed a “strong” first quarter as sales passed £1bn amid the coronavirus lockdown. The figures In the period between 29 March and 27 June, B&M reported 27.7 per cent growth in group revenue from £904.6m to £1.15bn. B&M UK revenue for the period jumped 33.7 per cent to £987.8m, with like-for-like [...]
Every Lidl helps: German discount chain boosts sales in bumper Christmas trading January 11, 2019 German discount supermarket Lidl boosted sales eight per cent over the Christmas period, it revealed today. In the six weeks to 30 December sales were up eight per cent on the same period last year with Saturday 22 December the busiest day. Lidl’s results were aided by a 33 per cent jump in sales for [...]
Fuller’s pubs chief executive Simon Emeny joins WH Smith board February 26, 2019 The chief executive of Fuller's pubs has joined the board of WH Smith to sit as a non-executive director, the high street retailer announced this morning. Simon Emeny, group chief executive of London brewery Fuller, Smith and Turner, will be joined by Greensill Capital chairman and former Citibank chief executive Maurice Thompson. Read more: Surge [...]
FTSE 100 and Wall Street chase record highs as vaccine hopes boost markets December 1, 2020 The FTSE 100 logged its best session in three weeks today while Wall Street hit record highs as markets continue to ride a wave of vaccine optimism. The blue-chip bourse closed up 1.9 per cent, while the FTSE 250 midcap index rose by 2.6 per cent. It comes after the FTSE recording its biggest gain [...]