WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 18, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES FEARS OVER RETREAT ON VOLCKER BANK RULES The Volcker rule, which bans US banks from trading for their own account, is set to include exemptions that some officials fear will weaken its impact, people familiar with the situation have warned. In the wake of UBS’s $2.3bn (£1.4bn) loss last week, alleged to have [...]
MBA students go gaga over lessons from pop stars September 14, 2011 LOOK along the business books section in a bookshop and you will find many tomes that promise to teach you how to invest like Warren Buffett or to learn from Bill Gates how a start-up can turn you into a billionaire. But alongside those you will also find another sub-genre of books that promise to [...]
THE TIPSTER June 26, 2011 THE UK retail sector is having a torrid time (see page 1) and Habitat’s move into administration at the end of last week was a major blow. The brand was huge in the 1980s, but the advent of companies such as IKEA really heaped on the pressure. It has therefore been a surprise for some [...]
THE TIPSTER June 26, 2011 THE UK retail sector is having a torrid time (see page 1) and Habitat’s move into administration at the end of last week was a major blow. The brand was huge in the 1980s, but the advent of companies such as IKEA really heaped on the pressure. It has therefore been a surprise for some [...]
AN INNOVATIVE REGION THAT BRIMS WITH INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES June 7, 2011 SCANDINAVIA is a region known for its innovation and is home to plenty of well-known technology and energy companies. Although the Nordics are often overlooked, its laws and regulations are encouraging to investors and the region proposes some interesting investment opportunities. REGIONAL GROWTH Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland – all four markets belong to the [...]
In English for the first time, read The Truth About IKEA November 17, 2010 WITH an insider’s knowledge, Johan Stenebo’s controversial book is a remarkable, personal view inside a company that overtook Argos as the UK’s largest home furnishings retailer in 2009 but, after 67 years, only disclosed its profits for the first time last month (worldwide net profit £2.2bn in the year to 31 August 2009). In these [...]
Ikea builds on dominance in key UK market October 31, 2010 SWEDISH retailer Ikea has grown to become the home furnishings market leader after a tough year for the sector. The furniture group said like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland have risen one per cent to £1.2bn in the year to 31st August. Ikea edged ahead with a six per cent market share at the [...]
The new Sharan: big AND clever May 24, 2011 BACK in the early 90s it felt like MPVs were everywhere. Created to solve the challenge of how to move big families about, they were sold as useful and trendy until the public caught on to the fact that the reality was rather different. Though big, these lumbering beasts often proved impractical, with minimal luggage [...]
The new Sharan: big AND clever May 24, 2011 BACK in the early 90s it felt like MPVs were everywhere. Created to solve the challenge of how to move big families about, they were sold as useful and trendy until the public caught on to the fact that the reality was rather different. Though big, these lumbering beasts often proved impractical, with minimal luggage [...]
Ikea announces profits for first time, promises to be more open October 3, 2010 SWEDISH furniture retailer Ikea has released full-year trading results for the first time announcing net profit increased 11.3 per cent to €2.5bn (£2.2bn) for the year to 31 August. The store said group sales for 2009 increased by 1.4 per cent to €21.8bn, equivalent to 3.1 per cent growth, despite what it called “difficult” external [...]