Greene King swoops on 11 Punch pubs June 9, 2009 EMBATTLED pub group Punch Taverns yesterday disposed of 11 pubs in a £30m deal with rival firm Greene King. The acquisition comes after Greene King raised £207m from shareholders to take advantage of cut-price assets in the pub sector. The 11 pubs generated earnings before interest and tax of £3.55m in the year to end [...]
How the Russian oligarchs came to rise and reign in boomtime London August 5, 2009 LONDONGRADBY MARK HOLLINGSWORTH AND STEWART LANSLEYFourth Estate, £12.99ONE of the most visible signs of the times over the past few years has been the increasing Russification of London. The likes of Roman Abramovich, the owner of Chelsea Football Club, Oleg Deripaska, who made headlines when he entertained the then-EU trade minister Peter Mandelson and shadow [...]
RUM at the top August 8, 2008 The Caribbean spirit is entering the ranks of the premium tipples, writes Timothy Barber What do you think about when you think about rum? For lots of folk, the answer is one of two things: a glass of Bacardi and coke, or pirates. Okay, so a few people know that it forms the basis for [...]
How the Queen’s Dressmaker got its cutting edge back October 25, 2005 When Timothy Maltin was just 27 he became the managing director of a national institution. Five years ago, Timothy Maltin went to work in tracksuit bottoms and a green Pilgrim Services sweatshirt top. Just the job when you’re running a grave tending business. But these days Maltin is chairman and chief executive of Hardy Amies, [...]