Justin King has his final party at Sainsbury’s July 3, 2014 Some might think it’s odd to listen to “White Christmas” and eat Brussels sprouts on the hottest day of the year, but certainly not Sainsbury’s staff. “It’s the third time we’ve had our Christmas review on the hottest day of the year – it’s something of a hat-trick,” chief Justin King told The Capitalist at [...]
Sainsbury’s and Tesco ditch Transport for London’s Tube station Click & Collect scheme June 17, 2015 It seems the retail revolution is still a little way off, after supermarket giants Sainsbury's and Tesco ditched a scheme introduced by Transport for London (TfL) to let shoppers collect their groceries at Tube stations. Read more: TfL given the green light to turn its HQ into flats The scheme, introduced amid much pomp and [...]
Justin King bids farewell to Sainsbury’s after 10-year reign July 9, 2014 Justin King bade farewell yesterday after 10 years as chief executive of Sainsbury’s, reassuring shareholders at the annual meeting in Westminster that the retailer was well equipped for the future and that he was leaving the business “in safe hands”. His successor Mike Coupe paid tribute, describing King’s “passion” and dedication as an inspiration. Chairman [...]
Retail sales on way up as trade deficit narrows – London Report June 7, 2015 DATA out this week might just provide some reasons to be cheerful, with retail sales numbers expected to show healthy growth during May. The British Retail Consortium sales monitor is expected to show strong year-on-year retail sales growth in May in data out tomorrow. According to Howard Archer at IHS Global Insight, this would “fuel [...]
Cost of the weekly shop declines as supermarket price war rages on May 5, 2015 The cost of the average weekly grocery shop plunged by eight per cent year-on-year in May as fierce competition between the grocers continues to impact the market. Research by mySupermarket’s Groceries Tracker showed that a basket of 35 staple products across all major grocers cost a total of £86.69 in May, down from £93.87 12 [...]
Mike Coupe: Three things you didn’t know about Sainsbury’s CEO July 14, 2014 Chief executive of Sainsbury’s Mike Coupe 1 He describes himself as a “keen but average guitarist” and prepared for his new job by going to Glastonbury with his wife. 2 He enjoys cycling and recently completed the London to Brighton race in aid of the British Heart Foundation 3 He has a cat called Gretchen, [...]
Justin King confident Sainsbury’s will still outperform June 11, 2014 Sainsbury’s outgoing chief executive Justin King said he was confident that the supermarket chain would continue to outperform its rivals long after he had gone, despite the group reporting a fall in like-for-like sales for a second consecutive quarter. King has overseen nine years of unbroken growth during his time at the company and has [...]
Mix it up: Breathe new life into your G&T with these artisan gins June 9, 2015 Familiarity can breed contempt. Prior to the recent resurgence, such was the state of Britain’s relationship with the gin and tonic. The fire had gone out: it had become a cocktail of convenience. It wasn’t always thus. Like all good love stories, British affection for the G&T was born in battle. It was a [...]
Tesco first quarter results and AGM: Three things to expect from Friday’s figures June 21, 2015 Tesco will update the market on its first-quarter figures – the first since reporting its biggest ever loss – while executives will face shareholders at its AGM. Here's what to expect from the supermarket on Friday. 1. The numbers will continue tumbling The supermarket’s first quarter is unlikely to tell a different story from the [...]
Morrisons the only “big four” supermarket in growth June 2, 2015 Is this a case of too little too late or the beginning of a turnaround? Morrisons was the only one of the “big four” supermarkets to grow over the last 12 weeks, according to latest figures by Kantar Worldpanel. The supermarket, which this week faces demotion from the FSTE 100, managed a sluggish 0.1 [...]