Christmas hampers for gourmets November 24, 2010 Fortnum & Mason The Classic Christmas Hamper (£150) is a veritable box of delights, containing a Christmas pudding, cognac butter, cognac marmalade, mulling spices, assorted English creams and, er, a musical biscuit tin (it plays Jingle Bells, natch). www.fortnumandmason.com British Fine Foods Online shop BFF takes the effort out of shopping for the big day [...]
Retailers look for Christmas sales lift December 6, 2010 CONSUMER spending showed another month of modest growth in November, according to data released today. Yet shop vacancies have risen compared with last year as the high street cuts back on costs. Prospects for Christmas sales remain “delicately poised” following the early winter freeze, said the British Retail Consortium (BRC), which conducted the survey with [...]
4m to buy tablet this Christmas December 6, 2010 Over 4m Brits plan to buy a tablet computer like Apple’s smash hit iPad over Christmas, spending a total of £1.4bn, according to a survey. The research from price comparison site USwitch found a further 21 per cent of people plan to buy one within the next year – even though 94 per cent already [...]
Triple A rating still in doubt August 1, 2011 THE US could still be downgraded by ratings agencies despite passing its deficit reduction plan yesterday, say economists, leaving debt markets under a cloud of uncertainty. The deal to cut US spending by $2.4 trillion over the next decade falls far short of S&P’s stated requirement that Washington would have to produce some $4 trillion [...]
The exec who introduced the iPod generation to the BBC July 28, 2011 AS the executive responsible for introducing the BBC’s iPlayer service, Ashley Highfield has a track record that most can only dream of. Launched on Christmas Day 2007, the BBC’s online catch-up TV service was an instant hit and has gone from strength to strength ever since. In the first fortnight, viewers downloaded more than 3.5m shows, smashing [...]
Theo Fennell sets sights on profit fuelled by China July 7, 2011 JEWELLERY designer Theo Fennell has pledged to take his company back into the black, with China a main driver of sales. In the 12 weeks to the end of June, like-for-like retail sales rose 15 per cent, the company said in an update. That followed a dire Christmas in which the jeweller was hit by [...]
Banks give FTSE a boost as pre-Christmas rally continues December 22, 2010 BRITAIN’S leading share index pushed higher yesterday, supported by gains from banks as reports China is ready to buy Portuguese bonds eased European debt concerns. At the close, the FTSE 100 was up 31.69 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 5,983.49, edging ever closer towards the 6,000 level last seen in June 2008. The blue [...]
Banks give FTSE a boost as pre-Christmas rally continues December 22, 2010 BRITAIN’S leading share index pushed higher yesterday, supported by gains from banks as reports China is ready to buy Portuguese bonds eased European debt concerns. At the close, the FTSE 100 was up 31.69 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 5,983.49, edging ever closer towards the 6,000 level last seen in June 2008. The blue [...]
TIFFANY HINTS AT STRONG CHRISTMAS November 24, 2010 LUXURY jewellry retailer Tiffany said yesterday its fiscal third-quarter profit rose a better-than-expected 27 per cent, helped by demand across most geographic regions. Tiffany’s quarterly net income rose to $55.1m (£34.8m), or 43 cents a share, from $43.3m, or 35 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. Sales in the quarter ended 31 October rose [...]
TIFFANY HINTS AT STRONG CHRISTMAS November 24, 2010 LUXURY jewellry retailer Tiffany said yesterday its fiscal third-quarter profit rose a better-than-expected 27 per cent, helped by demand across most geographic regions. Tiffany’s quarterly net income rose to $55.1m (£34.8m), or 43 cents a share, from $43.3m, or 35 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. Sales in the quarter ended 31 October rose [...]