Income hike for Punch Taverns November 12, 2014 UK BAR and pub operator Punch Taverns yesterday announced its core estate had achieved 1.3 per cent growth in like-for-like net income for the year ending 24 August. The Staffordshire-based company also successfully completed its capital restructuring process, reducing its total net debt by £600,000. The company said it was “delivering [its] business plan with [...]
Spirit rejects strong takeover bid from Magners maker C&C Group October 23, 2014 SPIRIT Pub Company has rejected a takeover bid from Magners maker C&C Group, it emerged last night. It will instead move forward in a deal with rival Greene King. Spirit said in a statement that it had “reviewed the proposal and rejected it”. C&C had made an attractive offer for the company yesterday despite currently [...]
Focus on Bermondsey: Take a walk on the south side April 9, 2015 Affordable housing in Zone One is becoming something of a rarity in London, but look just south of the river and you’ll find one area in particular that’s still a decent prospect for first-time buyers looking for a good investment. Paul Bent, sales manager at Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward’s London Bridge branch says young professionals [...]
Where to celebrate Thanksgiving 2014 in London November 27, 2014 Today is Thanksgiving – and even if you're not surrounded by the warm glow of familial love, there are places to celebrate it in the capital. Whether you want to tuck into some turkey, pick at a pumpkin pie, or simply give thanks over a festive cocktail, there are dozens of London bars, pubs and [...]
Mix it up: London Beer Week proves there’s more to life than cocktails February 10, 2015 Every summer, the world’s young (and not so young) adorn their arms with an ever-growing number of wristbands from music festivals. Each is a trophy, a plastic testament to their summer of mud. But why should ravers be the only ones to show off? Next week, you can join in – and you won't even [...]
A big cheers for Marston’s as share price rises on higher sales October 8, 2014 Shares in Marston's went up by 0.5 per cent to £14.15 this morning, after it reported a strong performance for the year ended 4 October. In a trading update released in advance of its preliminary results on 27 November, the pub-restaurant retailing business said like-for-like sales were up across all its estates. It added [...]
Budget 2030: What will chancellors of the future have to grapple with? March 3, 2015 Red box at the ready: it’s two weeks until George Osborne delivers his final Budget of this Parliament. As it is happening only days after Nesta’s future-gazing London festival FutureFest (taking place on 14 and 15 March), we’ve been speculating as to what the Budget in 2030 might look like. Let’s take a look into [...]
Focus On Highgate: Why this north west suburb has been the garden of London for 300 years March 26, 2015 Most areas in London have been through good times and bad times. But the gentrification cycle seems to have completely passed Highgate by. The extraordinarily green suburb of north west London has remained a constant spot of affluence in the capital and it remains for many the epitome of the desirable London village. How has [...]
Retailers cheer at review into business rates December 3, 2014 RETAILERS welcomed plans for a full review of the UK’s 400 year-old business rates system, seen by the industry as one of the biggest threats to the future of businesses on the high street. Businesses have long called for a reform of rates, which are charged on commercial properties including shops and calculated according to [...]
Best of the Brokers for 07 November 2014 November 6, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com ITV Westhouse Securities reiterated its “add” rating, and said it was positive on ITV’s “fundamental attractions”, which include the breadth of its content portfolio, the quality of its management team and its “unrivalled ability to deliver a large mass-market TV audience to advertisers”. [...]