Break: Government freezes quarantine list for Christmas period but US Virgin Islands fall foul December 17, 2020 The Government has added Uruguay, Namibia and the US Virgin Islands to the list of countries returning passengers must quarantine after visiting. But Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has said there will be more changes to the quarantine list until January 7th, mitigating the chance of travel chaos over Christmas, unless it is an “emergency.” No [...]
Sunday Times Rich List: Marcus Rashford tops the UK’s biggest givers May 21, 2021 Manchester United football player Marcus Rashford has become the youngest person to top The Sunday Times Giving List this year, which measures philanthropy among the ultra-wealthy. The list highlighted today that the UK saw more new billionaire’s during the pandemic than any other time over the list’s 33-year history. However, this year also saw a record amount of donations, exceeding £4bn [...]
High life for the housebound? BA begins sale of first class stock November 23, 2020 You might not be able to fly first class at the moment, but you could slip into some first class slippers this Christmas after British Airways announced a sale of thousands of stock items. Housebound passengers missing the high life will be able to splash out on the full range of BA items, from champagne [...]
From today, business lunches are allowed again December 2, 2020 Business lunches inside ARE allowed under new Tier 2 restrictions, so from today, the Government has confirmed. The Business Department confirmed the policy to City A.M. earlier. Official sources have though said that a traditional office Christmas lunch would not be permitted under the rules coming into place in London today. Government guidance dictates that [...]
Cath Kidston returns to the high street with flagship Piccadilly store December 2, 2020 Cath Kidston has this morning opened a flagship store in Piccadilly, which will be its only physical branch after the retro-inspired retailer fell into administration earlier this year. The retailer closed all of its 60 UK stores in April, resulting in the loss of 900 jobs, after its Hong Kong private equity owner Baring appointed [...]
Ocado lifts full-year profit forecast following home delivery boom during pandemic December 10, 2020 Ocado has raised its full-year profit forecast after the online supermarket saw grocery sales boom during England’s second national lockdown. Revenue at Ocado Retail, the company’s joint venture with Marks & Spencer, surged 35 per cent in the three months to 29 November to almost £580m. The group said full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation [...]
Black Friday boosts central London shopper numbers despite lockdown November 30, 2020 Black Friday boosted retail footfall in central London last week despite the closure of all non-essential shops. Footfall rose 4.8 per cent across all UK retail destinations compared to the previous week, soaring 21.6 per cent in central London and 5.1 per cent in outer boroughs. UK high streets and retail parks benefited the most [...]
Goin’ underground: Tube journeys jump a third as lockdown ends December 3, 2020 The number of Tube journeys jumped a third yesterday compared to last week as the national lockdown restrictions were finally lifted. According to data from Transport for London (TfL), there were 2.64m taps in-and-out of Tube stations yesterday, 33 per cent higher than on the same day last week. That’s roughly a third of the [...]
Corona Impact Series: A Chelsea jeweller conveys her message of bling via Zoom and Bing March 29, 2021 In this series, City A.M. looks at the financial and economic impact of the ongoing pandemic on a range of small and medium-sized businesses across London. This week: How three lockdowns forced an upmarket jewellery chain to convey a personal message of bling via Zoom and Bing. The accelerated shift to digital has been the theme of the [...]
Covid-19 lockdown: Government tells public to ‘act like you have the virus’ January 9, 2021 The government has instructed the public to act like they have got the coronavirus and adhere to Covid-19 lockdown rules amid fears that the NHS is struggling to cope with the influx of new cases. A new advertising campaign has been launched reinforcing the “stay at home” message, in a bid to stem the transmission [...]