Ashwin Bhardwaj travels to the cultural heart of Russia, to eat and drink with the locals of St Petersburg April 17, 2019 There are not many places that have left me literally gobsmacked, but the moment I stepped outside the Finljandski Train Station in St Petersburg, I knew that I had arrived somewhere special. It was here, in 1917, that Vladimir Lenin stepped back onto Russian soil after nearly 20 years of exile. He had taken the [...]
BrewDog reports a jump in sales for the year so far as global expansion plans get into full swing August 23, 2018 BrewDog has reported a jump in sales so far this year, as it provided a half-year update for more than 85,000 investors. The figures Overall revenue at the Scottish craft beer maker reached £78m in the first half, up by 55 per cent on the previous period. Some £10m was generated through BrewDog's bar division, marking an [...]
London has lost a quarter of its pubs since 2001, an average loss of 81 pubs per year April 19, 2017 The number of London pubs has fallen by a quarter – an average loss of 81 pubs per year – in the last 15 years, according to figures released by London mayor Sadiq Khan. The number of pubs in 2016 fell 25 per cent to 3,615 from 4,835 pubs in 2001. Barking and Dagenham has [...]
Pinter Three and Four review: The Harold Pinter Theatre continues its excellent run of the eponymous playwright’s short works November 16, 2018 The Harold Pinter Theatre continues its season of one-act plays written by its namesake with another six hours of rarely-performed material that can – nay, should – be viewed in a single, mammoth sitting. Pinter Three – there will be a total of seven productions, running through to next year – is the most challenging [...]
Heineken’s £403m Punch Taverns takeover gets the green light from competition watchdog after offering to sell dozens of Punch Taverns pubs August 18, 2017 The competition watchdog said today it had accepted proposals by Heineken to resolve concerns over its proposed £403m takeover of Punch Taverns by selling dozens of pubs. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had opened an investigation into the takeover and found 33 local areas where the deal could reduce competition. So in June, Heineken [...]
IFISA investments in local businesses mean you can support your community in exchange for attractive returns March 6, 2019 There is an old saying that goes: “Neither a borrower nor a lender be.” Originally taken from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the line is about the risks of lending or borrowing money from your friends, because you might lose both the money and the friendship. Over time, the saying has morphed into a piece of general financial [...]
A further 39 distilleries opened in the UK last year as the taste for gin grows | City A.M. August 6, 2018 Hogarth will be turning in his grave to learn a further 39 distilleries opened up in the UK last year, as the popularity for craft spirits shows little sign of abating. Gin remains a key driver of micro-distillery growth, especially in urban environments, while Scotland has seen a boom in new whiskey makers. Other spirits, [...]
Meet the banker-turned-restaurateur bringing the City’s dining scene to life February 14, 2019 Whatever happened to the liquid lunch? It is a question often asked with nostalgia throughout the Square Mile. Traders in pubs, City executives in boardrooms, journalists and lawyers in wine bars; the sight and smell of booze at noon was at one point in time as much a part of the City’s identity as pin-stripes [...]
Saving into a Junior Isa is a great way for new parents to invest in their children’s future February 14, 2019 Think back to when you turned 18 years old. What would you have done if, on that birthday, you were handed £40,000? Would you have splurged it all on travelling the world during a gap year, or would you have been prudent and put it towards a housing deposit? You could have used it to [...]
Death of the High Street? Why we’re still backing UK retail April 9, 2019 Following some dire headlines you might rightly wonder why the share prices of UK retailers have recorded double-digit gains this year (see graphic, below). Surely the relentlessly downbeat mood music from the mainstream media (and pessimism among analysts) is confirmation that the UK consumer is in full retreat, and consumer-exposed sectors are in deep trouble? [...]