Why Engawa is an unusually well thought-out restaurant March 17, 2015 In Japan, the fax machine is still king of the office. While the western hemisphere abandoned it at the first whiff of email, the Japanese persevered, appreciating the personal touch that comes from a hand-written note, even if that note has been broken down into a series of blips and hisses and reassembled somewhere far [...]
Pret A Manger thriving on a macaroni diet April 21, 2015 Quinoa and coffee are the order of the day, Clive Schlee tells Jenny Forsyth PRET A Manger boss Clive Schlee is talking quickly and excitedly. Perhaps he’s just feeling upbeat about the British cafe chain’s record yearly figures – showing a total sales rise of 16 per cent to £594m. Or maybe he’s had a [...]
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 [...]
Zenos to speed ahead with sports car production after raising £2m June 30, 2014 SPORTS car maker Zenos has won £2m funding from investors including Carphone Warehouse founder Sir Charles Dunstone. Zenos was founded two years ago by Ansar Ali and Mark Edwards, previously chief executive officer and chief operating officer respectively of Caterham cars. The firm plans to produce its first cars next year, with a starting price [...]
How psychology can make you a better negotiator March 18, 2015 Use empathy and build trust to get better results in negotiation. What can help make you a better negotiator? The common advice is to research your opponent and do your homework on what they want to achieve from the negotiations. But it’s also crucial to recognise the psychology behind the bargaining process. Several studies have [...]
EasyHotel IPO raises just half of target £60m June 25, 2014 EasyHotel has raised just half of the £60m it had hoped to gain for its 30 June IPO on the AIM market. The company has now priced its shares at 80p for the company's flotation on 30 June, implying a market capitalisation of £50m. The £30m the IPO is set to raise will be used to roll out [...]
A class of her own: Anthemis founder Amy Nauiokas talks gender and the future of banks May 10, 2015 What makes someone exceptional? Being chief executive of Barclays Stockbrokers by 34? Heading up four major departments at Cantor Fitzgerald in the wake of 9/11? Or setting up and running both a digital financial services investment and advisory firm and a media production company? These are just the highlights of Anthemis and Archer Gray founder [...]
London’s best eats now within reach: New app Uncover aims to take the pain out of restaurant reservations April 22, 2015 Many of London’s top restaurants can be legitimately described as “exclusive”, primarily because they cost upwards of a hundred pounds a head – prices way out of most ordinary people’s price range. There is, however, another echelon of exclusivity inhabited by restaurants that aren’t only eye-wateringly expensive, but are also booked up for years to [...]
The latest gimmick (or the next big thing): Cheese and coffee March 17, 2015 How does a new restaurant make its mark on a London foodie scene already reaching saturation point? There’s the old fashioned way: serving great food at a reasonable prices. And there’s the 21st century way: coming up with a gimmick, a weird pairing, some novelty way of serving or ordering food, something to make people [...]
IonStar founders Liz and Tim Hughes talk connecting City talent, lifeboats, piano lessons and how to make a real difference March 15, 2015 Like most couples, Tim and Liz Hughes got to the stage in life where they wanted to start a family. The challenge they faced was that, as successful professional people, they wanted to make the most of their skills and abilities – but also their family life. “Throughout my career, I’ve watched women above me [...]