Equistone fancies French pudding maker October 21, 2013 EQUISTONE, the private equity house founded by ex-Barclays buyout executives, has taken a bite out of a French luxury pudding maker that supplies tasty treats to M&S and McDonalds. The outfit, led by managing partner Guillaume Jacqueau, has bought a majority stake in French dessert conglomerate Europeenne des Desserts (EDD) for an undisclosed sum. The [...]
Brand Index: Heinz could be the victor of the global burger battle October 29, 2013 THE BATTLE of the burgers got saucier this week when McDonald’s announced it was severing its 40-year relationship with Heinz after the ketchup-maker hired a former head of Burger King as its new CEO. Perhaps adding salt to the wound, Burger King revealed better-than-expected third-quarter profits. McDonald’s profits also narrowly topped expectations, but its sales [...]
Expansion lifts full-year sales at Wagamama January 14, 2014 WAGAMAMA, the Japanese-inspired noodle chain, said yesterday that sales jumped 13.5 per cent last year as the company ramped up its expansion plans in the UK. The private equity-owned group posted sales of £141.2m in the year to 28 April compared with £124.4m the previous year, driven by 14 new restaurant openings. Pre-tax profits edged [...]
Mind the nap: Deloitte boss in sleeping selfie January 9, 2014 DELOITTE’S head of real estate Andy Rothery fell foul of the selfie craze just before Christmas when he unwittingly fell asleep on the train home. The City boss woke up from his slumber to find the girl next to him taking selfies of the two of them. His fellow commuter was happy to show him [...]
London Report: Sharpest fall in the FTSE since turn of the year January 23, 2014 BRITAIN’S main equity index yesterday suffered its biggest one-day fall this year, weighed down by disappointing US economic data and weak updates from Easyjet and Pearson. Global stocks extended losses in the afternoon as data showed US manufacturing growth slowed in January for the first time in three months. The data further undermined sentiment towards [...]
Ashley scores in the weird world of business tiffs December 15, 2013 MIKE Ashley is not happy with Adidas, after the German sports company refused from next season to let Ashley’s retail giant Sports Direct sell its replica Chelsea kits – incidentally one of Sports Direct’s bestsellers. Ashley is understandably miffed, and it has even been suggested the billionaire plans to build a hostile stake in Adidas [...]
New York Report: US data clog to clear as report season begins October 20, 2013 A BACKLOG of US data will begin to clear this week with payrolls figures landing just as more than one-quarter of S&P 500 companies report earnings. But equities, at record highs, have already surpassed expectations for the year and could begin to drift sideways. The S&P 500 closed Friday at 1,744.50, an all-time high, making [...]
Two charts that show how artists like Jay Z reacted to Cristal’s hip-hop snub October 24, 2013 There's a great infographic from Vanity Fair floating around – charting the favoured brands of the hip-hop artist Jay Z. Jay Z's Most Name-Dropped Products: An Infographic http://t.co/o17My04ev7 pic.twitter.com/cA2sc9hoXw — VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) October 18, 2013 We've all become used to product placement deals in entertainment more widely, but whether Jay Z mentions these [...]
Government set to bring in cap on pension fees October 29, 2013 THE GOVERNMENT will today announce a public consultation to decide on pension scheme charges, with a likely cap of 0.75 per cent on annual fund management fees. Some 6m-9m people will be forced to make new or increased pension savings because of the auto-enrolment scheme, increasing the focus on value for money in fund management. [...]
Profits rise for Burger King as costs drop 90pc October 28, 2013 BURGER King Worldwide, known for its Whopper hamburgers, yesterday said it plans to introduce fewer seasonal and limited-time menu items in a bid to help restaurant operators improve profits and speed up service. Burger King, which reported a better-than expected third-quarter profit, has recently added a string of attention-getting products ranging from bacon sundaes and [...]