Aldi closes in on Waitrose as the discounters scent blood July 29, 2014 The challenges facing Britain’s big four grocers was further laid bare yesterday after new data revealed that Aldi was poised to overtake Waitrose to become the country’s sixth biggest supermarket. Kantar Worlpanel data released yesterday showed Aldi’s sales jumped 32 per cent year-on-year in the 12 weeks to 20 July, bringing its market share within [...]
How Aldi is about to overtake Waitrose and become the sixth largest supermarket in Britain July 29, 2014 Aldi and Lidl continue to win in the battle of the supermarkets as their market share surged and sale rise, leaving the big four- Tesco, Asda, Sinasbury's and Morrisons- trailing behind. Aldi’s stellar performance places it almost level with Waitrose as the big four continue to feel the pressure from discounters. The latest figures from [...]
John Lewis retains crown as Britain’s most trusted retailer October 8, 2013 JOHN LEWIS has been voted Britain’s most trusted retailer, according to research out today that showed that overall trust in retailers has hit a four-year low. Of the 10,000 shoppers surveyed by consultancy firm OC&C Strategy, 96 per cent said they trusted the department store group, followed by other heritage brands Marks & Spencer and [...]
Tesco: The decline and fall of the supermarket giant and its share price in one chart April 22, 2015 The business world is reacting to the news that Tesco has racked up a £6.38bn loss – one of the biggest losses ever made by a UK company. The beleaguered supermarket’s pre-tax losses for the year are even higher than the £5bn markets had been expecting. There was also a big hit from the writedown of [...]
Britain’s biggest companies call on Westminster for fundamental business rates reform September 16, 2014 Some of Britain's biggest businesses including Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's, Tesco, General Motors and Tata Steel have called on the government to rip up the current business rate regime claiming the current system is “a critical problem for all of British business”. The controversial tax delivers around £25bn to the Treasury every year, but [...]
Scottish independence: BT, TalkTalk, EE, Telefonica, Vodafone and Three warn of increased costs if Scots vote Yes September 14, 2014 Six of Britain's leading telecoms companies are the latest to warn of potential price rises if Scotland votes Yes to independence. The chiefs of BT, TalkTalk, EE, Telefonica UK, Vodafone UK and Three UK have issued a joint letter warning that the uncertainty around regulation and spectrum allocation, which mobile networks use to operate, could [...]
Capita’s bid pipeline swells to record £5.7bn as private sector strengthens July 23, 2014 Outsourcing company Capita has announced a total of £1.3bn of major contract wins in the first half of this year, as its major contract win rate has exceeded 66 per cent. Chief executive Andy Parker says that the firm's financial results have been "good", describing the start to the year as "an excellent sales period" [...]
Ed Miliband tries to thaw Labour’s relations with business July 2, 2014 Labour leader Ed Miliband will today attempt to convince UK financial leaders and entrepreneurs that he backs big business. Miliband will seek to reassure the business leaders at a speech in London that Labour wants to work with, not against them, in a bid to reverse perceptions that the party is anti-corporation. “The only way [...]
L&G buys Waitrose warehouse May 27, 2014 The property arm of insurance firm Legal & General has agreed to forward fund a new distribution warehouse for Waitrose in Milton Keynes, in a deal worth £114m. The 100,000 square feet warehouse in Milton Keynes’ Magna Park is being built by logistics developer Gazeley and has been pre-let to Waitrose on a 30-year term. [...]
Monitise buys voucher firm Markco for £55m June 26, 2014 MOBILE payments firm Monitise yesterday said it would acquire MyVoucherCodes.co.uk and Last Second Tickets owner Markco Media in a £54.5m deal. Monitise said the acquisitions would allow it to become “the enabling partner of choice amid the biggest shift in financial services and shopping in a generation, as brands turn to mobile”. The deal is [...]