JD Sports on track as sales surge January 7, 2010 JD Sports Fashion said yesterday it was on track to beat the City’s profit expectations for the year after enjoying a festive boost. Like-for-like sales rose 6.6 per cent in the five weeks to 6 January, driven by the performance of its fashion-focused chains Bank and Scotts, where trading rose 9.7 per cent. The group [...]
BA SUES UNION OVER XMAS STRIKE CRISIS December 15, 2009 BELEAGUERED airline British Airways (BA) is taking legal action against the Unite union in a desperate bid to prevent cabin crew from striking over the peak Christmas period, it said yesterday. Thousands of cabin crew voted to walk out for 12 days from 22 December earlier this week, in the latest blow to an airline [...]
Snow forces Eurostar to cancel trains January 6, 2010 EUROSTAR cancelled four trains yesterday due to bad weather and expects more problems just three weeks after powdery snow turned its rail link between Britain and France into a pre-Christmas undersea travel trap. Snowstorms sweeping across southern England and northern France brought road and rail chaos, with Eurostar warning travellers of the same problems that [...]
Supermarkets score for both value and reputation December 15, 2009 In the highly-competitive world of supermarkets, there are two basic types of brand: those which are “cheap and cheerful”, which focus on low cost while maintaining reasonable quality; and those which cost more but make a feature of the higher quality products. These show up very clearly in the respective average BrandIndex scores from the [...]
BA STRIKE OFF BUT UNION FIGHTS ON December 17, 2009 A WINTER walk-out by cabin crew at ailing airline British Airways was yesterday declared illegal by the High Court. The Court’s judge Mrs Justice Cox sided with the carrier, saying that the Unite union had not correctly balloted its members on the strike action. BA had argued that the union took votes from staff who [...]
BA cabin crew start vote on strike action January 25, 2010 BRITISH Airways staff began voting yesterday on possible strike action after the flag carrier’s bosses and unions failed to strike a deal on a planned shake-up of working conditions. The Unite trade union opened a strike ballot for the airline’s cabin crew after talks with the airline failed to secure a deal on changes to [...]
Can I discuss my personal issues at work? January 25, 2010 DEAR VEXED: I’m going through a divorce and I can’t help crying at my desk sometimes. I don’t want to be inappropriate, but keeping it all from my colleagues and boss feels bizarre. Should I confide? And if so, to what degree? Lucy, 34, IT support THIS is a tricky one. On one hand, drinks [...]
BA in winter of discontent December 14, 2009 BRITISH AIRWAYS (BA) is facing hundreds of thousands of pounds of losses after its cabin crew voted overwhelmingly in favour of a 12-day strike, threatening to paralyse the airline over the peak Christmas and New Year period. A bitter row over jobs, pay and working conditions escalated yesterday, when more than 12,000 BA members of [...]
DSG enjoys a window of opportunity November 26, 2009 DSG International, the electricals retailer yesterday reported a recent surge in sales helped by store upgrades and consumer demand for Microsoft’s new Windows 7, giving it confidence for Christmas. DSG, which runs the Dixons, Currys and PC World chain, said sales at stores open at least a year fell four per cent in the 24 [...]
Blacks sales heat up after a boost from the big freeze January 11, 2010 OUTDOOR retailer Blacks Leisure has benefited from Britain’s cold snap as it reported a 12 per cent hike in sales. Blacks, which runs its own brand shops as well as the Millets chain, said it had “significantly enhanced its recovery prospects” after a restructuring with the closure of 87 loss-making stores in the fourth quarter [...]