Hamleys poised to be sold to a relative of House of Fraser’s Chinese billionaire owner October 18, 2015 A Chinese investor is said to be closing in on a deal to buy the UK’s most famous toy store Hamleys in the coming weeks. Ludendo, the French family-owned toy group, is in advanced talks to sell the chain to a Hong Kong company run by a relative of Yuan Yafei, the billionaire owner House [...]
Fuller’s and Young’s vying to purchase London’s Cubitt House September 24, 2015 FULLER, Smith & Turner and Young’s – two of Britain’s largest pub groups – are competing to acquire a collection of popular London drinking venues. In a move that highlights continuing demand for premium sites in the sector, the groups are vying to buy Cubitt House, which owns three pubs in Belgravia, Central London, and [...]
The newly crowned king of pastry Pierre Hermé talks about getting a sweet deal July 7, 2016 This time, it was personal. Experts across the world had voted on the world’s best pastry chef for two years running, and neither time did the accolade go to a Frenchman. For this proud nation of dessert-makers, this is tantamount to a national disgrace. This year Pierre Hermé, the man variously called the Picasso of [...]
West End poised for £2.5bn boost from Crossrail October 5, 2015 THE ARRIVAL of Crossrail is set to bring a £2.45bn boost to the West End by 2020 as thousands more visitors pour into central London, new research shows. The New West End Company (NWEC), which represents 600 businesses, said annual turnover for its retailers is predicted to hit £11.25bn just two years after completion of [...]
Just eight tweets could be giving away where you work and live May 18, 2016 Just eight tweets could give away where you work and live – and anyone who wanted to, could work it out, not just tech whizzes. Anyone who enables their tweets to be tagged with a location via GPS could be revealing more than they think, as scientists reveal the information can be used to work out these [...]
Facebook gets new London headquarters on Tottenham Court Road September 11, 2015 Tottenham Court Road had better brace itself for an influx of social media aficionados, as Facebook is renting over 225,000 square feet of office space in central London for huge new UK headquarters. Property developer Great Portland Estates is leasing its entire Rathbone Square development, by the Tottenham Court Road Tube station, to the social [...]
West End retailers poised for £2.3bn Christmas and Black Friday 2015 shopping bonanza October 27, 2015 West End retailers are bracing themselves for a £2.3bn shopping bonanza this Christmas, with spending set to reach its highest level since 2007, as higher disposable incomes and lower prices help boost consumer confidence. London’s main shopping streets – Oxford Street, Bond Street and Regent Street – are expecting a 1.2 per cent uplift in sales [...]
Hamleys’ rival toys with takeover August 20, 2015 THE MIDDLE Eastern owner of Hamleys’ rival, The Toy Store, is said to be considering a takeover bid for the country’s most famous toy shop. Gulf Greetings has sent a letter of intent to Hamleys’ French owner Ludendo, highlighting its interest in acquiring the iconic Hamleys names, according to Retail Week. It is the second [...]
London house prices: This is who the capital’s prime rental tenants are, what they do, where they live and how much they pay for the privilege October 26, 2015 Ever wondered who those people are that are paying upwards of £8,000 a week to live in one of the capital's swankiest pads? Well, fellow nosy neighbours, wonder no more. In prime central London, a number of tribes have been identified by lettings agent EJ Harris, showing an increase in international tenants across the board [...]
Piquet restaurant in Fitzrovia is a former car-park that now serves snails to die for December 15, 2015 92-94 Newman Street, W1, piquet-restaurant.co.uk FOOD ★★★★☆ | VALUE ★★★★ | ATMOSPHERE ★★★☆☆ Cost for two with booze: £140 The part of Fitzrovia surrounding Piquet isn’t what you’d call atmospheric. At least not in a good way. To the north block after block of faceless office buildings recede into the distance; to the south lies the grubbier [...]