Investors eye UK supermarkets’ Christmas performance in busy week on London markets January 9, 2022 Investors will be eyeing how the UK’s biggest supermarkets fared over the Christmas trading period in a busy week of corporate announcements on London markets. Traders will be looking for clues in the string of supermarket updates on whether the imposition of plan B measures and soaring Covid-19 cases prompted consumers to divert money that [...]
There will be enough turkeys for Christmas, says British Poultry Council boss November 15, 2021 Though the UK will not face a severe shortage of turkeys this Christmas, choices will be limited, according to the head of the British Poultry Council (BPC). The shortage of the festive bird has been a symptom of the country’s current labour shortage, which has seen fewer retail staff, butchers and meat processing plant workers. [...]
Christmas light switch-on brings shoppers back to the high street November 15, 2021 The number of people on UK's high streets rose by 2.5 per cent last week compared to the previous week, with the Christmas buzz gradually bringing shoppers back.
Boris Johnson snapped in Downing Street Christmas quiz last year December 12, 2021 The Prime Minister has sparked further outrage after a photo of him taking part in a Christmas quiz at Downing Street last year has been revealed by the Sunday Mirror. The quiz reportedly took place on 15 December when indoor household mixing was still banned in London and office social gatherings including Christmas parties were [...]
All Brits want for Christmas is… gift cards or cold cash November 14, 2021 Gift cards, vouchers or cold cash are the top Christmas presents Brits are hoping to receive this year. More than a quarter (27 per cent) of people chose this option in a YouGov poll, while clothing came second, the choice of 23 per cent. After spending much of last year indoors amid coronavirus restrictions, a [...]
Christmas gift ideas: Watches to satisfy the horology nerds in your life December 10, 2021 Aston Martin x Girard-Perregaux Laureato Chronograph With seemingly hard-and-fast automotive hook-ups like Hublot x Ferrari and Breitling x Bentley suffering retirements from the race, you’d wonder who would venture gamely onto such a notoriously fickle scene. But the coming-together of Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux feels like something that soars way clear of mere badge engineering [...]
Shapps echoes Sunak saying Christmas gifts will be available October 16, 2021 Transport secretary Grant Shapps has echoed Chancellor Rishi Sunak and said that Christmas gifts will be available despite the backlogs witnessed at UK ports. “People will be able to get things for Christmas,” he told Sky News. “When I talk to the ports they said it is a busy picture, but if you compared us [...]
All of our cities are at risk this Christmas as they wrestle with Covid uncertainty again December 10, 2021 Boris Johnson has now confirmed our fears: Plan B will be brought in, and with it, more mask rules, Covid passports and work from home advice. It will undoubtedly have a monumental impact on businesses that rely on high footfall in city centres. December was supposed to be the month that saw many nightclubs, bars [...]
Pub bosses implore January teetotallers to not avoid local after dry Christmas January 5, 2022 Hospitality leaders have called on customers to keep visiting the pub this month, after venues lost out on sales this Christmas. Pubs, particularly in city hotspots, faced waves of cancellations this Christmas while office workers were also instructed to work from home under Plan B Covid measures. Now, bosses have urged customers to keep supporting [...]
Labour squeeze shows no sign of cooling before Christmas October 15, 2021 Worker shortages that are threatening to throw a spanner into retailers’ Christmas operations show now signs of cooling. Over the last week, 235,000 job postings were created online, with a noticeable jump in demand for sales and retail workers, research by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) found. The uplift was partly driven by a [...]