Bottom Line: This is the end of the big four supermarkets March 13, 2014 DALTON Philips kicked off more than just a price war yesterday. By promising to slash prices in an effort to turn around Morrisons’ fortunes, he also exposed a growing schism at the heart of the British grocery market. For years, supermarket analysts have talked about the big four (Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons) but with [...]
Major retailers call for shake-up of bricks and mortar tax system February 17, 2014 BRITAIN’S retailers have today called for the link between business rates and rateable property value to be scrapped over fears that retailers with lots of property are being unfairly hammered. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and accountants EY have put forward several alternatives to the current business rates system: replacing it with a tax based [...]
Witty proves a big hitty with GSK employees March 20, 2014 WHEN you start a new job, it can be quite difficult to know whether you’re walking into the garden of worklife Eden or the gates of Hades. Unless you’ve got someone on the inside. Lucky you. Well thanks to the people at Glassdoor (it’s all about transparency – see what they did there) we have [...]
Why breakfast staples could be about to get more expensive April 23, 2014 The surge in coffee futures documented over the last couple of weeks isn’t the only thing that could up the cost of breakfast. A Brazilian drought, which significantly damaged crops, is pushing up prices. Changes will most likely felt by global wholesalers over the next couple of months as harvests begin, says Thomas Pugh, a [...]
The week in brief April 6, 2014 Advertising Week Europe draws to a close This year’s conference came to an end last week, after a roster of the industry’s best-known names gathered to discuss themes including native advertising, programmatic buying and the importance of young talent. Among the stars in attendence were Idris Elba, James Corden, and Sainsbury’s outgoing chief executive Justin [...]
Asda and Tesco kick off latest fuel price war March 10, 2014 SUPERMARKET chain Tesco kicked off another fuel price war yesterday, swiftly followed by Asda, following a decline in the wholesale cost of petrol and diesel despite escalating political unrest in Ukraine. Tesco cut the price of its petrol and diesel by one pence per litre (ppl) from yesterday afternoon. Asda is lowering its diesel by [...]
Tesco slashed the price of milk. Here’s how dairy farmers have responded March 3, 2014 Dairy farmers have accused Tesco of sparking a price war with its supermarket rivals that will cause further damage to an already fragile dairy industry, after the retail giant slashed the price of milk. Britain’s biggest food retailer delivered a fresh broadside in the battle for customers’ loyalty after cutting the price of a four [...]
London Report: Supermarket fears lead FTSE to a fifth consecutive drop March 13, 2014 BRITISH shares fell for a fifth straight session yesterday, dragged down by supermarket stocks after WM Morrison cut its profit outlook, as well as by escalating tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine. Morrison’s was the worst performer on the FTSE 100 index, plunging 11.9 per cent, and its revised outlook triggered a sell-off [...]
Morrisons’ woes wipe £2.6bn off supermarkets March 13, 2014 FEARS of a new supermarket price war wiped around £2.6bn off the combined value of Britain’s major grocers yesterday after Morrisons launched a major assault on its discount rivals. Shares in Morrisons plunged 12 per cent – to their lowest level since 2008 – after it revealed it would invest £1bn in slashing prices over [...]
What you need to know before the open March 18, 2014 Markets remained resilient yesterday, in the face of sanctions being meted out by the EU on Russian and Ukrainian individuals. Today, expectations are that they’ll hold their nerve again, opening slightly higher, ahead of President Putin’s decision to the Russian parliament on whether to annex Crimea to Russia. Asian markets rallied in Tuesday trading – [...]