UK rail franchising system has ‘had its day’, says review head July 16, 2019 The UK’s rail franchising system has “had its day”, the man in charge with reviewing Britain’s railways has said. Former British Airways chief executive Keith Williams, who is leading a government-commissioned review into how to improve the industry, said the franchising model needed to be replaced by a “new commercial model” that worked in the [...]
HS2 faces seven-year delay as costs set to balloon to £88bn September 3, 2019 The real cost of HS2 could spiral to £88bn as the project faces years of delays, according to an explosive report authored by the chair of the controversial UK infrastructure project. Allan Cook, who has carried out an internal review of the project, said he did not believe the scheme, which will link London to [...]
Nginx, the open source project behind Netflix, Starbucks and Mcdonalds, picks up $43m in funding from Goldman Sachs June 20, 2018 Nginx, the company based on the open source web server of the same name, has raised $43m (£32.5m) in a series C fundraising round led by GS Growth, a growth equity platform within Goldman Sachs. Other investors from Nginx’s history include Silicon Valley stalwarts NEA, Index Ventures, Telstra Ventures and Runa Capital. More than 30 [...]
Upgrade your movie night with these apartments that have home cinemas February 7, 2020 This Sunday (or more accurately for viewers in the UK, the early hours of Monday) is one of the biggest days in the calendar for cinephiles, as they get to find out the winners of the 92nd Academy Awards. Plenty will be staying up, if only to mock the dodgy acceptance speeches and secretly hope [...]
Adverts in adversity: Johnny Hornby on the case for advertising through Covid-19 May 8, 2020 There’s no doubt the advertising industry has taken a battering in recent weeks, with the coronavirus crisis sparking the biggest fall in ad spend on record. In fact, with TV production on hold, it seems brands may have to turn to Zoom to keep their campaigns going. The downturn comes as little surprise. Marketing budgets [...]
City Moves for 11 October – Who’s switching jobs at Leo Burnett, Badi and Refinitiv? October 11, 2019 Today’s City Moves includes Leo Burnett, Badi and Refinitiv Leo Burnett Advertising firm Leo Burnett’s London office has appointed Carly Avener as managing director. In her new role, Carly will be responsible for the day-to-day running and operations of the agency. She will be working with the company’s existing clients such as Iceland, McDonald’s, Betfair [...]
Chris Grayling accused of ‘misleading’ parliament over money spent on ferry contracts February 12, 2019 Embattled transport secretary Chris Grayling faced another round of calls to resign yesterday over accusations he may have misled parliament in saying no taxpayer money was spent on the government's Brexit ferry contracts. Shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald today issued a point of order in the House of Commons over Grayling's statement that "we are [...]
Vodafone rings cynical tone with token gesture on executive pay July 12, 2019 Talk about a late call. By the time Vodafone signalled a concession this week over long-term share awards granted to its top executives, the damage had already been done. The “voluntary request” (a phrase underlining the City’s talent for tortured tautology) made by Nick Read and Margherita Della Valle has stuck in the craw of [...]
Horse Racing Betting Tips: Beat Le Bon or What’s My Story can secure Golden Mile glory August 1, 2019 WE HAVE already seen some incredible horses at Goodwood this week and this afternoon Battaash gets the opportunity to match Stradivarius’ feat by winning at this meeting for a third straight year. Charlie Hills’ speedball is ideally suited to this downhill track and as long as he doesn’t boil over in the preliminaries, the Group [...]
Lululemon ups fourth quarter forecasts on strong online and China demand January 14, 2019 Clothing retailer Lululemon Athletica boosted its profit and revenue forecasts for the last quarter of its financial year today, driven by online growth and demand from China. The Canadian retailer, which is known for its upscale yoga and athletic wear, said its upgrade was based on a strong holiday season and success “around the globe”. [...]