London gym chain Frame talks fitness, health, wellbeing, and babies April 29, 2019 Fitness is big business. There are over 7,000 gyms in the UK, and the market is worth almost £5bn, with around one in seven people paying gym membership fees. The sector has swelled thanks to the health and wellbeing trend which has grown in importance over the last decade, but also because of the huge [...]
Awards 2023 January 4, 2023 The City is back, and so are the City A.M. Awards, recognising the best of the Square Mile, Canary Wharf and London’s business community – which has shown shown resilience, innovation and adaptability like never before over the past year. We’re delighted to host what will be a wonderful celebration of the capital’s rebound, but [...]
Thomas Cook share price crashes as lenders demand extra £200m to seal rescue deal September 20, 2019 Thomas Cook’s share price plunged more than 15 per cent in early morning trading after it confirmed lenders are demanding an extra £200m as part of efforts to rescue the world’s oldest holiday company. The embattled travel operator said today that investors want £200m to finalise a restructuring strategy, coming on top of a further [...]
Virgin Active offloads 16 fitness clubs to David Lloyd Leisure February 7, 2017 Virgin Active, the eponymous gym chain, has offloaded 16 of its clubs in the UK to David Lloyd Leisure for an undisclosed sum. The fitness firm will continue to operate 45 clubs in the UK, 33 of which are in London. Last year, Virgin Active sold a further 35 UK gyms to Nuffield Health, a [...]
Costa spin-off could lead to £3bn Whitbread windfall – and cost just £20m April 15, 2018 Whitbread shareholders could snaffle a £3bn windfall if the firm spends just £20m spinning off Costa Coffee – a move one the world’s most famous activist hedge funds is clamouring for. Elliott Advisors has built up a £430m position in Whitbread over the last year. A stock market disclosure late on Friday revealed it is [...]
David Lloyd investor ICG Enterprise Trust makes record proceeds and outperforms October 9, 2017 Listed private equity fund the ICG Enterprise Trust has announced it generated record proceeds in the first half of this year, receiving £117m from the sale of various investments. The trust, which invests in other private equity funds as well as making its own investments alongside funds, increased the underlying value of its portfolio to [...]
Tim Henman interview: Calendar Slam for Novak Djokovic would be an achievement with no rival across sport June 23, 2016 Should Novak Djokovic complete the calendar Grand Slam and win all four major tournaments in the same year it would be an unrivalled feat across any sport, according to former British No1 Tim Henman. World No1 Djokovic will bid for the third leg of his four-pronged quest for the Holy Grail when Wimbledon begins on Monday, [...]
FTSE 100 history: how the index has changed over 33 years July 3, 2017 The FTSE 100 index has just seen one of its quarterly changes with security firm G4S and real estate investment trust Segro promoted to the top 100. Although perhaps small in themselves, these regular events have changed the face of the UK’s leading index since it was formed in 1984. For the many investors whose [...]
Wimbledon 2015: Murray is back to his best, says former trainer Mark Petchey June 29, 2015 After ending the 77-year wait for a British winner of Wimbledon two years ago, Andy Murray endured a torrid year in 2014, crashing out at the quarter-finals stage to Bulgarian Grigor Dmitrov. Read more: Murray ready to plot route to a second SW19 crown In fact, Murray has yet to add to his grand slam haul [...]
Private equity firms dine out on restaurant chains January 19, 2016 The restaurants and bar sector was a veritable feeding frenzy of deals last year, with more choice of companies to buy than an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. Robust trading conditions thanks to improved consumer spending provided an opportune time for private equity companies to sell long-term investments to rival buyout firms with cash to spend. CBPE’s sale of [...]