Join the house party at the decadent Dolls House in Islington August 18, 2015 If you were decorating a doll's house, wouldn't you want to stamp your style on it? That's just what Adam Towner and Katy Gray Rosewarne, the owners of the full-size Dolls House in Islington, have done. Prepare yourself for whimsical interiors, complete with hand-illustrated walls, buttoned banquettes and ranks of glass decanters. So much [...]
Tesco chief exec Philip Clarke relieved to be out as supermarket issues profit warning July 21, 2014 Tesco boss Philip Clarke has said he is relieved to be leaving the struggling supermarket as the retailer issued a profit warning. Britain's largest retailer said sales and profit in the first half of the year are below expectations. Clarke oversaw Tesco's attempt at repositioning in the face of tough market conditions and increasing competition [...]
Mitchells & Butlers pulls off £266m Orchid deal June 16, 2014 HARVESTER and All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers yesterday announced it has acquired rival pub operator Orchid Group for £266m in cash, in a deal that the firm expects will lead to a double digit boost to earnings. Orchid’s 173 pubs will join Mitchells & Butlers’ existing estate of 1,592 managed pubs and 52 [...]
London Report: West’s sanctions on Russia and Malaysia jet crash hit FTSE July 17, 2014 BRITISH airline shares fell sharply yesterday on news that a Malaysian Airline Boeing 777 had been shot down over eastern Ukraine. The FTSE 100 finished 46.35 points down, or 0.68 per cent, on 6,738.32, while gold added $20 to $1,322 an ounce on increased tensions caused by the west’s tougher sanctions on Russia. British Airways [...]
Greylock fund backs UK based SME specialists June 23, 2014 GREYLOCK IL, the Israeli-UK venture capital firm which has backed Just Eat and Wonga, has joined forced with other investors to invest $30m (£18m) in UK-based financial services company Ebury. The firm, which is an affiliate of famous US venture capital pioneers Greylock Partners, will join with the other anonymous investors to provide debt and [...]
Matthew turns to Plan Z as England win squash 1-2-3 July 28, 2014 ENGLAND’S Nick Matthew admits he was forced to draw on all of his natural stubbornness in order to beat team-mate James Willstrop and retain his Commonwealth Games squash singles title yesterday in Glasgow. World champion Matthew saw off his rival 11-9, 8-11, 11-5, 6-11, 11-5 after Peter Barker had taken bronze, as England ensured a [...]
A&B shops left after rescue are closed down May 29, 2014 ADMINISTRATORS for the high street pawnbroker Albemarle & Bond have closed most of the 59 stores not rescued by Promethean last month as they work to release money from the remains of the business. According to documents filed recently at Companies House, Albemarle & Bond Holdings has debts to trade creditors in the region of [...]
The financial A to Z of Scottish independence – CNBC Comment September 15, 2014 A new, independent Scotland might flummox a foreign visitor. So it’s lucky this financial A to Z has turned up – even if some say it’s a parody of the Better Together campaign. A: Alex – Scotland’s official unit of currency, though largely superseded by an informal bartering system, where one barrel of oil [...]
Shares slump at Kingfisher after earnings miss May 29, 2014 KINGFISHER’S shares fell nearly five per cent yesterday after first quarter profits fell short of City expectations, despite its B&Q chain delivering its best performance in a decade. The group, which also owns Screwfix and Castorama in France, said underlying operating profits increased by 20.3 per cent to £142m in the 13 weeks to 3 [...]
Pub chain M&B gets boost from better margins November 26, 2013 SHARES in British pubs group Mitchells & Butlers (M&B) soared yesterday after it announced better-than-forecast sales and operating margins. Analysts said the company’s operating margins were stronger than expected, rising to 16.5 per cent from 16 per cent, helped by Mitchells & Butlers’ restructuring programme. The company, whose brands include Harvester and All Bar One, [...]