Next raises profit forecasts after sales boost January 5, 2010 NEXT has increased its full-year profit forcecast after reporting an unexpected boost in sales. The fashion retailer’s like-for-like sales grew by 3.2 per cent in the 22 weeks to Christmas Eve. It has now raised its full-year profit forecast to between £490m and £500m – above the previous estimate of £472m. In a statement Next [...]
House of Fraser celebrates sales January 10, 2010 Own-brand labels helped department store group House of Fraser to surging Christmas sales. Like-for-like sales rose 7.1 per cent in the eight weeks to 2 January, following a 1.5 per cent fall during the same period a year ago. Chief executive John King said the figures meant House of Fraser was a festive winner, putting [...]
E-clear in administration as legal fight continues January 19, 2010 A HIGH Court judge yesterday granted an administration order against E-Clear, the company which dealt with the online ticket sales of collapsed travel firm Globespan. Mr Justice Vos, who made the ruling at a hearing in London, heard that E-Clear consented to the move. The action against the company was brought by business adviser PricewaterhouseCoopers [...]
Top US brands win as results beat forecasts February 9, 2010 AMERICAN brand giants McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Walt Disney reported stronger-than-expected results yesterday, though the food and drink profits are increasingly coming from outside the US . McDonald’s beat expectations with a 2.6 per cent increase in January sales compared to a year earlier. The US market, which fell 0.7 per cent, was propped up by [...]
Poor results for big names in telecoms February 25, 2010 France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom’s celebration of the merger between their Orange and T-Mobile brands in the UK will be muted after both reported disappointing annual results. Deutsche Telekom reported revenue of €64.6bn (£57.2bn), up 4.8 per cent on 2008, largely due to acquisitions. But full-year net income plummeted 76 per cent from €1.5bn in [...]
Amazon profits soar thanks to book reader January 29, 2010 AMAZON profits surged by 71 per cent in the final three months of 2009. The online bookseller said its Kindle electronic book reader had driven the sales boom. The device – Amazon’s bestselling product – will face competition from Apple’s new iPad, which was unveiled this week. Overall sales at Amazon – which now offers [...]
Pubs and restaurants see sales jump in December despite gloom January 18, 2010 PUB and restaurant groups managed a 2.9 per cent year-on-year increase in sales in December despite poor weather, fewer Christmas parties and price hikes ahead of the VAT increase this month. However, the increase was lower than the 4.7 per cent total like-for-like growth in 2009. Mark Sheehan from Coffer Group, which published the figures, [...]
BAH, HUMBUG December 14, 2009 Despite reports of strong trading on the high street, a leading stockbroker has predicted that spending on Christmas presents this year is likely to take a significant knock thanks to the muted economic environment. Responses to Execution’s November “spend trend” survey suggest that consumers expect to spend an average of £373 on Christmas presents this [...]
Bolland to start crunch talks January 10, 2010 MARC Bolland will jet back early from holiday to have crunch talks with Wm Morrison about his departure date. Soon-to-be new employer Marks & Spencer wants him to start as chief executive as soon as possible but under the terms of his contract the Dutchman still has nine months notice to work. Morrison’s is believed [...]
WII SALES ROCKET January 7, 2010 STRONG Christmas sales for Nintendo’s Wii games console, revealed yesterday, helped allay fears that the popularity of the gadget has waned. Nintendo’s US Wii sales exceeded 3m units in December up sharply from 2.12m units a year earlier. Meanwhile, total sales of Nintendo’s handheld game player, the DS, have reached 40m units in Europe, making [...]