From Hatton Garden heist to Eric Pickles in a pickle: Here’s what got us talking this week April 10, 2015 There was a jewel heist. There was plenty of oil. And somewhere in California, there was the world's first gathering of micronations. Here's what got us talking this week 1. There's oil in them there hills A huge oil well, thought to contain more of the black stuff than has been produced by [...]
July Budget 2015: Are you an entrepreneur, an apprentice or a single parent? What does George Osborne’s statement mean for you? July 8, 2015 THE SINGLE PARENT Catherine Gannon, 51Managing partner at law firm Gannons Gannons Commercial Law continues to do well, with profits and earnings up on last year. Catherine is commercially savvy and has restructured the business from an LLP to a limited company, illustrating that she is a smart operator in a segmented legal [...]
Razor sharp: Will King talks moving on from King of Shaves, politics, a plan for Tesco and why we need Tinder for voting May 4, 2015 I came, I saw, I shaved, I died’ isn’t how I want to be remembered,” quips Will King. In 1993, he founded King of Shaves, the popular men’s toiletries brand. In frustration over the poor quality of his own products, he turned to his then-girlfriend’s bath oil for a smoother finish. The resulting businesses, including [...]
Net prophet: Jim Chapman is the biggest star you’ve never heard of June 4, 2015 Photography: Leigh Keily Styling: Ozzy Shah Jim Chapman has the kind of adoring fanbase usually reserved for musicians and sportsmen. He’s a darling of the fashion world, sitting on every designer’s front row. Yet if you’re over 25, chances are you’ve never heard of him. He achieved his fame through vlogging, uploading good-natured clips [...]
Xmas hangover causes retailers January blues February 10, 2015 SHOPPERS held back on their spending in January after splashing out over Christmas and Black Friday, according to accountancy firm BDO. Figures from BDO’s High Street Sales Tracker show that sales from stores open at least a year at mid-sized high street chains grew just two per cent last month. Like-for-like sales jumped 10.3 per [...]
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 [...]
Best of the Brokers for 15 May 2014 May 14, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com JUST EAT JP Morgan Cazenove begins covering the takeaway delivery service with an “overweight” rating and a price target of 290p. The broker likes the look of Just Eat’s sales growth potential, with high barriers to entry for rivals and a successful management [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]