Why are convenience stores all the rage? August 22, 2024 Earlier this week, Waitrose became the latest UK grocer to announce a big push into the convenience store market. The supermarket giant will open 100 stores in the next five years as part of a $1bn investment plan. Waitrose follows Asda, Morrisons (with its McColl’s estate), Tesco, Sainsbury’s and the Co-op in ploughing ahead with [...]
More Consolidation Ahead for Europe’s Consumer Sector? October 10, 2022 Europe’s consumer industry has suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and has had to adjust quickly to survive. Lockdowns froze physical players and e-commerce provided a lifeline for survival for some. But the easing of restrictions did not necessarily help: consumer behaviours have clearly changed and retail footfall has not recovered to pre-pandemic [...]
McColl’s shares topple by a third after supply chain nightmare hits profit forecast November 17, 2021 Convenience store chain McColl’s saw shares plummet by a third after it warned annual profits would be impacted by supply chain chaos. The firm blamed a lack of HGV drivers for a lack of supply of key items in the final quarter of its financial year. It said its EBITDA for the 2021 financial year [...]
The City View Daily Podcast: Inflation, David Cameron and Arbuthnot Latham November 17, 2021 Welcome to City A.M.’s daily news podcast, The City View, live from the newsroom. Editor Andy Silvester whistles through the big news in the Square Mile today – including the latest on David Cameron’s faltering business career and a day to forget for McColl’s. But the big news of the day is inflation – which [...]
Convenience chain McColl’s battles administration fears February 26, 2022 Convenience store chain McColl’s Retail Group is gearing up to find a buyer as the struggling company nears collapse. As first reported by Mark Kleinman for Sky News, the group have called in advisers to help find a bidder, and are exploring third party options, who may be willing to invest further capital. McColl’s trades from [...]
EG Group swoops in to save collapsing convenience chain McColl’s as thousands of jobs remain at risk May 6, 2022 McColl’s had been placed under administration of accounting and consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers, after failing to get the short-term funding to stay afloat. In an announcement this afternoon, the company said: “In order to protect creditors, preserve the future of the business and to protect the interests of employees, the Board was regrettably therefore left with no [...]
Issa brothers’ EG Group sees fuel gross profit margins reduce slightly after war in Ukraine May 24, 2022 The Issa brothers’ EG Group has seen its fuel division’s gross profit margins slim slightly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Across the firm’s fuel arm, gross profit hit $481m in the three months to 31 March, a 16 per cent increase compared to the first quarter of 2021. However, its gross profit margins were slightly [...]
Exclusive: Rotageek’s CEO on ‘the silver bullet’ for the future of flexible working June 28, 2022 The early 2020s have been difficult for business leaders and employers. Not only have they needed to cope and adjust to unpredictable levels of customer demand, but they’ve also needed to to keep their teams going through the harsh uncertainties of lockdowns, pingdemics and furloughs. These curveballs have forced businesses to accelerate the need to [...]
Wholesale group Supreme bets revenues on vaping amid lockdown growth July 20, 2021 Wholesale provider Supreme, the company behind 88Vape, has seen its revenue for the smoking alternative alone lift 36 per cent as lockdown smokers tried to kick the habit. The company’s total preliminary revenue was up 33 per cent at £122.3m in the year to 31 March, up from £92.3m in the year prior. Gross profits [...]
McColl’s fails to return to to profit despite bumper convenience store sales during pandemic March 23, 2021 McColl’s reported a jump in revenue last year as the convenience store chain benefitted from a surge in demand for local stores during the pandemic, but failed to return to profit. Total revenue for the year was up 3.2 per cent to £1.26bn, with its store closure programme partly offsetting the surge in sales. Like-for-like [...]