Omicron and supply chain issues plague Joules’s profitability February 1, 2022 The rise of Omicron and ongoing supply chain issues have plagued the profitability of British lifestyle group Joules. In the six month ended 28 November, Joules’s financial results were in line with previous guidance, as profits went down 29.7 per cent on 2020 levels to £2.6m, while revenues hiked to £127.9m. But in the last [...]
In a world first: New Zealand imposes lifetime tobacco ban on anybody born after 1 January 2009 December 13, 2022 New Zealand today passed into law a unique plan to phase out tobacco smoking by imposing a lifetime ban on young people buying cigarettes. The law says that tobacco cannot ever be sold to anybody born on or after January 1, 2009. It means the minimum age for buying cigarettes will keep going up and [...]
British Land hails ‘notable improvement’ as restrictions ease July 13, 2021 British Land said that it had collected 99 per cent of the rent due for its offices in June as the FTSE 100 firm welcomed a “notable improvement in activity” across its markets. The property developer also said that in the seven weeks since the first lifting of restrictions, it had seen footfall and sales [...]
N Brown shares drop as profit falls on ‘year of restructuring’ June 25, 2020 Fashion retailer N Brown has today posted falls in both profit and revenue for the last financial year, blaming the drop on a lengthy period of “restructuring” the business. In the 12 months to 29 February 2020, the owner of the Simply Be and Jacamo brands said adjusted profit before tax fell 28.8 per cent [...]
Morrisons profit sinks as Covid costs outweigh sales boost September 10, 2020 Morrisons today reported higher sales for the first half of the year but said costs related to Covid-19 safety measures had hit profit. The figures Morrisons reported total revenue of £8.73bn, down 1.1 per cent on the same period last year. But like-for-like sales excluding fuel rose 8.7 per cent. Statutory profit before tax fell [...]
RPC posts record revenues after sales surge 10 per cent year on year July 20, 2022 City of London law firm RPC today posted record revenues of £149.4m across its global operations, after the firm’s sales jumped 10 per cent on the previous year. The commercial law firm’s record results mark a 36 per cent increase in RPC’s revenues since the financial year 2020 – on the back of surging demand [...]
Shoppers spend less at Ocado after offices reopen and Covid measures ease March 17, 2022 Ocado customers are spending less through the online grocery delivery service as pandemic habits return to normal. In an eight week trading update, Ocado said its average basket size came in at £124, 15 per cent lower than last year. This was reflective of changing shopper behaviours as customers return to physical supermarkets and offices. [...]
Office for National Statistics throws men’s suits out of inflation calculation basket and adds meat-free sausages March 14, 2022 The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has added meat-free sausages, sports bras and anti-bac wipes to the basket of goods its statisticians use to calculate price hikes. In its annual shake up of the basket, the ONS added 19 items to its Consumer Prices Index and threw out 15 items. Products to be added include [...]
Weekend read: A hybrid high street August 30, 2021 In March 2020 as physical stores were closed, brands with existing e-commerce channels were able to quickly adapt and many enjoyed a boom in online sales led by an increase in mobile shopping. More customers than ever relied on their phones to shop, with global mobile app audiences growing by 31 per cent — nearly twice the [...]
London venues warn they will haemorrhage sales if rail strikes go ahead this Christmas December 5, 2022 London restaurants have warned they will haemorrhage sales should planned railway strikes go ahead this month, as union bosses rejected a new pay offer over the week. Searcys champagne bar and restaurant chain, which has venues at the Gherkin and St Pancras International station, said it was worried it would take a 30 per cent [...]