Intelligent design: Made.com co-founder Chloe Macintosh talks knitting and the importance of opportunities April 26, 2015 When Chloe Macintosh sat down with a friend of a friend, she didn’t expect to get a job out of it – or to go on to become the co-founder of e-commerce furniture company Made.com. But Brent Hoberman, co-founder of Lastminute.com and mydeco.com, isn’t any old coffee meet-up – and there’s nothing ordinary or unremarkable [...]
Gordon Castle: Let us whisky you away to Scotland March 8, 2015 It was here atop the snow-spattered hills of Speyside in the Scottish Highlands that King Macbeth was said to have met his violent end. According to legend, it was the future King Malcolm III who stabbed him in 1057 (he died several weeks later). Life in the valleys rising up either side of the river [...]
Private equity firm Hellman in Auto Trader bid February 1, 2015 PRIVATE equity firm Hellman & Friedman is putting together a takeover bid for used car business Auto Trader, which could put an end to the firm’s plans to float on the London stock market. A source close to the deal said an offer from the US private equity house was a “logical step” for Auto [...]
The world’s brightest will shun the UK if isolationist rhetoric doesn’t stop now January 8, 2015 We all have our own image of UK entrepreneurship. Sir Richard Branson is a common first choice, and Sir James Dyson is another. For me, it is the Indian Restaurateur. When I first founded Cobra Beer 25 years ago, it was these tireless, unsung heroes of UK entrepreneurship who placed their trust and belief in [...]
Close Brothers property success outweighs weak markets income November 20, 2014 FINANCE house Close Brothers reported strong property finance incomes in the first quarter of its financial year, benefiting from the UK’s economic recovery. Its asset finance arm also performed well, taking the loan book across the two units up 2.3 per cent to £5.4bn. Its asset management arm held steady in the three months to 31 [...]
New mortgage hurdles begin to make impact on property market October 23, 2014 THE NUMBER of mortgage approvals fell for the third month in a row as housing market activity continued to slow. Data released yesterday by the British Bankers Association, a trade body for UK banks, revealed that the number of mortgage approvals in September was 39,271 – a 14-month low. The figure marks a 10 per cent [...]
Property conference targeted by residents, unions and campaigners hoping to #BlockBoris October 14, 2014 For those planning on attending the annual property conference Mipim this week, the fact it is in dreary old London rather than sunny Cannes is not the only change in normal proceedings. The trade show, which expects to welcome 4,000 property delegates to its Olympia location, is being targeted by groups including anti-gentrification campaigners, empty [...]
UK construction activity falls to its lowest in five months November 4, 2014 Activity in the UK's construction industry fell to its lowest level in five months during October, figures out this morning showed. Markit's purchasing managers' index (PMI) for construction, which measures activity in the sector, fell to 61.4 in October, down from 64.2 in September. Any number above 50 denotes growth in activity, so the industry [...]
Software firm Sophos eyes £1bn valuation in 2015 London float November 30, 2014 COMPUTER security company Sophos, owned by private equity giant Apax Partners, is reportedly planning a London listing next year that could achieve a valuation of £1bn for the business. Sophos is close to appointing an independent adviser to run a stock market listing in the first half of 2015, according to The Sunday Times. The [...]
The average London house price is now £514,000: But how is the rest of the UK faring? October 14, 2014 UK house prices are up 11.7 per cent in the year to August, the same as the year to July but how much are they being dragged up by London? Eleven point seven per cent growth seems big enough, given low wage growth and inflation of 1.2 per cent. But what about the context? According [...]