Ocado sounds alarm on product availability as supermarket shelves stand empty January 11, 2021 Ocado has warned that the availability of some products is being impacted by coronavirus-related staff absences in its supply chain. With more staff off sick or forced to isolate some grocery suppliers are having to consolidate their lines. “Staff absences across the supply chain may lead to an increase in product substitutions for a small [...]
Hunting for “10 baggers” – how the UK beat the US February 9, 2022 The ups and downs of US technology stocks dominate headlines. Before this year’s tech correction it would have been hard to miss the news, for instance, that Apple’s market capitalisation had exceeded $3 trillion. That was not too far short of the entire value of the UK stock market. What is less well known, however, [...]
Former Tesco chief Dave Lewis amongst New Year’s Honours December 31, 2020 Former Tesco boss Dave Lewis has been knighted in the New Year’s Honours List, alongside a number of business figures given gongs. Ocado boss Melanie Smith receives a CBE in recognition of her firm’s upscaling during the lockdown pandemic, and Co-op retail chief Joanne Whitfield receives the same honour. Read more: Retail wonks expect a [...]
Waitrose opens new London warehouse in online delivery push March 4, 2021 Waitrose has opened a new London warehouse in partnership with Wincanton in a bid to boost its online delivery capacity. The supermarket, which last year ended its partnership with Ocado, said the warehouse in Greenford will deliver 25,000 orders each week and employ an extra 800 staff when it opens fully later this year. That [...]
Joules buys digital retailer for up to £12.5m in bid to expand in booming homeware market February 9, 2021 Joules has bought digital homeware retailer The Garden Trading Company for up to £12.5m, as it seeks to expand further into the thriving interiors market. Garden Trading sells its own home, garden and outdoor product designs through its direct-to-consumer platform and through 1,000 stockists across the UK. Joules said the acquisition will strengthen its position [...]
Ocado, Dunelm and Superdry show there’s always winners & losers in retail July 10, 2019 It’s not all doom and gloom in retail. Whilst we have certainly seen a downturn on the high street, there are winners as well as losers. Next shares are among the best performers on the FTSE in 2019, up 30% so far. And they’re not alone in outperforming the market despite the trouble on the [...]
UK supermarket chiefs call for online sales tax on firms like Amazon February 8, 2021 Some of the UK’s largest retailers, including Tesco and Asda, have called for Rishi Sunak to “rebalance the tax base” between online and bricks and mortar retail in an apparent push for a new digital sales levy on firms like Amazon. In a letter to Sunak, 18 chief executives and union bosses said “online retailers [...]
Wall Street opens flat as investors await Fed minutes August 18, 2021 Wall Street’s main benchmarks opened broadly flat today as investors held back from making any sudden moves until after the publication of minutes from the Fed’s latest Federal Open Market Committee meeting. The blue-chip S&P 500 edged 0.07 per cent higher to 4,450.73 points, while the Dow Jones inched down 0.07 per cent to 35,321.59 [...]
Sales at Pets at Home pass £1.4bn as Brits pick up furry companions May 27, 2021 Revenue at Pets at Home jumped nearly eight per cent in the last year, as coronavirus-led lockdowns persuaded more households to get a pet. Revenue at the pet care retailer jumped 7.9 per cent to £1.14bn in the group’s 2021 financial year. Retail revenue reached £1bn for the first time despite Covid-19 restrictions, and revenue [...]
Revenue soars at Ocado during lockdown July 14, 2020 Retail sales for the first half of 2020 for online grocer Ocado jumped 27 per cent to £1bn, as Brits did their supermarket shopping from home. The group reported a loss before tax of £40.6m in the six months to the end of May, citing an increase in investment to handle increased demand as a [...]