The rise of the London Village January 16, 2014 IT SEEMS these days everyone wants their slice of village life, even if they live and work in the heart of the city. The Big Smoke has always been made up of distinct neighbourhoods with their own character and lifestyle, but the idea of the London Village has really taken hold in the public imagination [...]
Former M&S exec joins hotel group August 28, 2013 Former Marks & Spencer finance head Ian Dyson has added a new non-executive role to his portfolio by joining the board of Intercontinental Hotels. Dyson, who is a non-executive at Punch Taverns and is joining the Asos board in October, spent several years as the financial controller of Hilton Group.
Brand Index: There’s still time for M&S’s autumn range to blossom October 15, 2013 LAST week Marks & Spencer’s general merchandise arm was dealt a blow when a number of respected analysts warned that it is continuing to lose market share in women’s fashion, leading to a fall in its share price. Autumn sales figures won’t be released until next month, but if the naysayers turn out to be [...]
London Report: Recovery looks on track in busy reporting week November 3, 2013 SERVICES figures due out this week, plus the latest updates on industrial and manufacturing production, look set to show continued recovery for the British economy. “September’s industrial production figures are likely to show that overall output partially recovered from its surprise 1.1 per cent monthly fall in August,” said Martin Beck, of Capital Economics. “Manufacturing [...]
Public expect rate hike within two years as Bank’s Dale says one may come in 2014 October 17, 2013 The proportion of the public expecting a rise in interest rates has increased significantly according to a new poll by Markit. The poll conducted by Ipsos-MORI between 11-14 October found that 69 per cent of people asked expected rates to rise within two years, a 14 percentage point rise from the previous poll in August. [...]
Any Other Business – 22/08 August 21, 2013 High street retailers appear to be upping their game after Marks & Spencer announced earlier this week that its new campaign – Meet Britain’s Leading Ladies – was shot by famous fashion photographer Annie Leibovitz. It seems that the shop, which has renewed efforts to win back its female customers, has now set a trend [...]
Shares rise as City backs new M&S campaign August 19, 2013 SHARES in Marks & Spencer edged higher yesterday as the City backed the retailer’s new high profile autumn campaign, although some analysts warned that a failure to convert it into sales could deal a blow to chief executive Marc Bolland’s hopes of survival. Shore Capital analyst Clive Black said the campaign – featuring a host [...]
UK tangled up in 13m words of EU red tape October 13, 2013 BRITISH businesses have been hit with more than 3,500 new European Union rules since David Cameron came to power, according to figures released today that set out the enormous impact of the Brussels bureaucracy on UK companies. Despite the coalition’s commitment to cutting red tape, since May 2010 there have been 13m extra words of [...]
M&S’s new ad campaign will struggle to reverse slumping fashion sales November 5, 2013 YOU CAN visualise the meeting at Marks & Spencer’s headquarters when its new campaign, advertising its make-or-break Autumn collection, was finalised. An ad agency suggests the idea of female empowerment and the boardroom battleground. Any actual brand idea is forgotten, as the rolodex spins and agents are called. Actress Helen Mirren, artist Tracey Emin, author [...]
Best of the brokers for 06 September 2013 September 5, 2013 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com LAMPRELL Nomura has cut the oil services group from “neutral” to “reduce” and raised its target from 90p to 140p as part of a wider review of the sector. The broker thinks industry-wide earnings predictions for this year are around 15 per cent [...]