Profits up at Debenhams October 22, 2009 Department Chain Debenhams reported a better-than-expected 14 per cent full-year pre-tax profit and saying it had cash for acquisitions. Disappointing retail sales data from the Office for National Statistics cast a shadow over Debenhams’ news that it had made a profit of £125.2m, driven by a strong demand for its Designers at Debenhams range. Sales [...]
Profits up at Debenhams October 22, 2009 Department Chain Debenhams reported a better-than-expected 14 per cent full-year pre-tax profit and saying it had cash for acquisitions. Disappointing retail sales data from the Office for National Statistics cast a shadow over Debenhams’ news that it had made a profit of £125.2m, driven by a strong demand for its Designers at Debenhams range. Sales [...]
Ted Baker smashes forecasts October 8, 2009 Designer brand Ted Baker said trading was exceeding its hopes and reaction to its autumn and winter ranges had been “encouraging”, as it posted a better than feared fall in first-half profit, sending its shares higher. Analysts upgraded pre-tax profit forecasts for the year to the end of January 2010 and finance director Lindsay Page [...]
West End delivers boost for London sales growth October 18, 2009 LONDON retail sales in September had their strongest growth since August last year due to a wave of renewed consumer confidence, according to figures out today from the London Retail Consortium. Retail sales in central London were 7.5 per cent higher on a like-for-like basis in September than a year ago, when sales nosedived to [...]
THE TIPSTER MACRO DATA KEY TO THE WEEK AHEAD October 18, 2009 WITH a slew of macroeconomic data on the way, sterling-US dollar – otherwise known as cable – is sharply in focus this week. Although the pound made some solid gains at the end of last week, these may well be reversed on Friday when the UK third quarter GDP figure is released. Forecasts have been [...]
THE TIPSTER MACRO DATA KEY TO THE WEEK AHEAD October 18, 2009 WITH a slew of macroeconomic data on the way, sterling-US dollar – otherwise known as cable – is sharply in focus this week. Although the pound made some solid gains at the end of last week, these may well be reversed on Friday when the UK third quarter GDP figure is released. Forecasts have been [...]
WHAT GOD COMPLEX? BLANKFEIN IS JUST FEELING A WEE BIT LONELY November 8, 2009 One could feel a bit sorry for Goldman Sach’s chairman and chief executive Lloyd Blankfein. Push aside the fact that he earns more than the GDP of a small country for doing “God’s work”, and life on the 30th floor starts to look very lonely. “People are pissed off, mad and bent out of shape. [...]
BAs’ unions threaten strike action if staff are forced to leave the airline October 7, 2009 BRITISH AIRWAYS’ (BA) staff unions were last night locked in emergency talks, following the carrier’s decision to cut 1,700 cabin crew staff. The ubiquitous Unite union claims BA made the move without reaching an agreement, and us now threatening strikes over the Christmas period. Earlier this week, BA said 1,000 of its cabin staff had [...]
Keep your festive drinking in control November 23, 2009 ONE MINUTE we’re told that drinking alcohol in any quantity is bad for us; the next it appears that red wine is like mother’s milk and should be consumed with gay abandon. Only last week a Spanish study commissioned by the Basque Public Health Department was published, saying that men who drank up to 11 [...]
Gap is widening between best and worst brands October 20, 2009 THINGS have picked up on the high street over the last month, but it’s not a case of a rising tide lifting all boats: the recession seems to have made the customer more discerning. Of the 25 high street retailers which BrandIndex measures daily, we’ve taken three of our top-ranked, and compared them with three [...]