Tesco unveils £3.7bn merger with Budgens and Londis owner Booker January 27, 2017 Supermarket Tesco has reached a deal to merge with wholesaler Booker, owner of Budgens and Londis, with both firms stating an ambition to create the UK's leading food company. The groups will combine in a share and cash deal worth £3.7bn, after discussing a combination for almost a year. They said today that there are [...]
Automation is evolution, not a class war January 26, 2018 I suffer the great misfortune of living near a busy Tesco Express store, which, absent of self-service checkouts, often makes the innocuous task of buying eggs feel like a test of one’s self-restraint. While waiting for the two portraits of human inefficiency behind the till to serve 20 shoppers, glancing at my phone, I read [...]
Why UK-focused stocks look their cheapest in a decade March 19, 2018 Uncertainty about the country’s long-term relationship with the European Union, its biggest trading partner, has left many international investors nervous about investing in UK companies. One recent poll showed that UK stocks were the least popular asset class among global fund managers. I disagree. I can see bright spots in the UK stock market that [...]
Powa-founder Dan Wagner’s previous company ATTRAQT shares fall 25% after CFO finds ‘inaccuracies’ October 27, 2017 Shares in AIM-listed software company ATTRAQT lost a quarter of their value on Friday after its new CFO discovered “inaccuracies” on its books. ATTRAQT said that Eric Dodd, who became CFO at the start of September, found “inaccuracies in forecasting the timing of certain contracts and client “go-live” dates” following a review commissioned by the [...]
Suits you: Supermarket fashion is turning heads in the UK October 24, 2017 Cheap? Check. Convenience? Check. Choice? Check. Sainsbury’s launched a rival to Savile Row in outlets this week, giving shoppers a chance to buy suits with their weekly shop. The move is a classic example of how wafer-thin margins and the dog fight for market share is forcing supermarkets to turn towards different revenue streams – [...]
Competition watchdog could stop Tesco-Booker mega deal, claims retail body January 29, 2017 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) could stop Tesco's proposed £3.7bn takeover of Budgens and Londis owner Booker, according to a retail body that represents 33,500 local shops. "The CMA could either stop or put conditions on the deal," James Lowman, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores told City A.M. "The deal was a [...]
Imperial Brands in talks to save wholesaler Palmer & Harvey alongside Carlyle and McColl’s founder September 28, 2017 Tobacco giant Imperial Brands confirmed this morning that it is in talks to help save Palmer & Harvey, the UK’s biggest cigarette supplier. In a trading update, Imperial said it was seeking to create a “sustainable future” for P&H, which supplies Tesco and other major retailers. Shares in Imperial dropped 2.3 per cent this morning [...]
McColl’s founder approached by buyout house Carlyle to lead Palmer & Harvey rescue September 26, 2017 Private equity firm The Carlyle Group has invited a co-founder of convenience store McColl’s to take a key role in its rumoured buyout of Palmer & Harvey (P&H), according to Sky News. James Lancaster is reportedly being drafted in to join the grocery wholesaler as its non-executive chairman, in a deal aimed to salvage the [...]
Craft beer maker FourPure to create 20 new London jobs with £2.5m brewery investment in Bermondsey January 31, 2018 Craft brewer FourPure has put £2.5m into expanding its Bermondsey brewery, increasing capacity by 400 per cent. The project will create 20 new jobs and allow the brand, which is stocked in the likes of M&S, Tesco, Asda and Ocado to keep up with demand. Co-founder Daniel Lowe said the company was now talking to [...]
UK petrol prices: Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda kick off war at the pumps February 9, 2018 A UK petrol price war has kicked off with three of the big four supermarkets slashing prices at the pumps. In the last few minutes, Sainsbury's mirrored an earlier move by Asda and Morrisons this morning to knock 2p off a litre of petrol and diesel. Sources at Tesco said a decision had yet to [...]