Asos appoints M&S veteran Ian Dyson August 7, 2013 ASOS has replaced one Marks & Spencer veteran with another after hiring the high street chain’s former finance director Ian Dyson as a senior independent director. Dyson will join Asos’ board in October, the online fashion group said yesterday, just weeks after revealing that M&S’s ex-clothing boss Kate Bostock had left the firm. The 51-year-old [...]
Kennedy Wilson and Varde buy UK shopping centres for £250m September 5, 2013 US PROPERTY investment and services firm Kennedy Wilson and debt specialist Varde Partners yesterday agreed to buy a portfolio of eight UK shopping centres out of administration for $388m (£250m). Kennedy Wilson did not disclose which shopping malls they had acquired but said they were spread across England and Scotland and spanned a total of [...]
London Report: Retail gloom and US gridlock weigh on FTSE October 8, 2013 THE UK’S top share index slipped to three-month lows yesterday as weak data and downbeat analyst comments hit retailers and the fiscal deadlock in the United States kept broader sentiment subdued. In contrast to buoyant recent British data, retail sales growth slowed for a second month in September, according to BRC numbers. Analyst notes on [...]
London Report: UK retailers set to reveal if tills ringing again September 8, 2013 RETAILERS are set to reveal this week how big an impact the UK recovery is making as consumers return the shops. Reports from Dunelm, Home Retail, Morrisons, Next, Ocado and Sports Direct will show how confident buyers are in the improving economy. Ocado, which will update the market on Thursday, was rated a “buy” by [...]
Kate Bostock returns to the high street as Coast boss August 20, 2013 KATE Bostock, former head of general merchandise at Marks & Spencer, is to make a return to the high street next month as chief executive of Coast, the womenswear brand confirmed yesterday. Bostock’s appointment comes just weeks after she stepped down from Asos after a short-lived seven month stint as executive director at the online [...]
Former M&S merchandising head to return to the high street after Asos fiasco August 20, 2013 Kate Bostock, former fashion head at Marks & Spencer, is returning to the high street next month as chief executive of privately-owned occasion wear retailer Coast, following an ill-fated and short-lived stint as executive director at online retailer Asos. The retailer confirmed the news to City A.M. on Tuesday afternoon. Bostock's appointment to head up [...]
Drop in migration is bad for Britain’s economic growth March 2, 2013 WEDNESDAY’S GDP figures confirmed that the UK economy shrank in the last quarter of 2012 – in large part because of the weakness of exports. So the government’s strategy of generating growth by rebalancing the economy towards investment (which is also weak) and exports is far from on track. But the government is at least [...]
Supergroup to launch its first stores in Turkey August 22, 2013 SUPERGROUP, the company behind the Superdry fashion label, is to make its first foray into Turkey after signing a deal with a local franchise partner to open stores in the country. The popular clothing brand, whose celebrity fans include Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas and singer Ed Sheeran, announced yesterday that it has signed a [...]
Another senior level departure at online fashion retailer Asos July 21, 2013 ASOS’s human resources director Michelle Emmerson has stepped down, in the latest high profile departure at the online fashion giant. Her departure comes less than a week after Kate Bostock, the former head of clothing at Marks & Spencer, announced that she was to leave the company just seven months into the job. Asos has [...]
Pension deficits cost investors November 28, 2012 MARKS and Spencer has done an impressive job of cleaning up its pension deficit, knocking off £1bn over the last three years. It has now agreed a ten-year plan to deal with the remaining £290m. That saw a bump in the share price, which some attribute to the greater attractiveness of Marks and Spencer as [...]