2014 Black Friday to push UK Christmas spend to £91bn November 26, 2014 Half of Britain’s shoppers are set to storm online stores, shopping centres and supermarkets tomorrow in what is expected to be one of the biggest shopping occasions of the year. Some 47 per cent of shoppers are preparing to take part in Black Friday, which is expected to help push the UK’s Christmas spending up [...]
Tesco, Morrisons, Asda, and Sainsbury’s cut petrol prices as Brent crude falls again January 7, 2015 The UK’s supermarkets are cutting petrol prices as the falling price of oil fuels a pump war. Brent Crude dropped below a symbolic threshold this morning, sliding below $50 a barrel to $49.99. The supermarkets had already blinked, however. Asda capped its petrol prices at 107.7p per litre and diesel at 114.7p from 1 January, [...]
Sainsbury’s shares are jumping this morning. Here’s why February 4, 2014 Sainsbury’s shares have climbed over two per cent this morning after Bernstein Research upgraded the supermarket's stock this morning to ‘outperform’. Shares took a tumble last week after chief executive Justin King announced he's leaving. The initial five per cent drop (shares later stabilised) was a nod to King's performance – he's widely hailed for [...]
Justin King to leave Sainsbury’s in July January 29, 2014 Justin King is stepping down as chief executive (CEO) of Sainsbury’s in July, it's been announced. King’s been in charge for ten years; he’ll be replaced by Mike Coupe, current group commercial director. He only formally told chairman David Tyler that he was stepping down this morning. The decision, he said, was entirely his own [...]
2014 Christmas advert complaints: McVities’ animal cuties join Sainsbury’s, Halfords and John Lewis December 8, 2014 Never mind which brands are at the top of Christmas lists, the brands on top of the Christmas complaints list is a more interesting prospect – just ask the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Having taken 727 complaints to date about the Sainsbury’s WW1-themed ad, the latest Christmas short to ruffle festive feathers is McVities’ offering. [...]
Thames Water releases updated 12 Days of Christmas video as an “anti-fatberg” message December 15, 2014 If you're the sort of person for whom jolly Christmas songs can all get a bit sickly then Thames Water might just have the festive message for you. The utilities company – which has spent much of the year battling fatbergs in the city's sewers – has recorded a reworked version of the 12 [...]
Qatar appoints Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al-Thani as new chief for sovereign fund December 3, 2014 Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund yesterday appointed a member of the emirate’s royal family to replace its chief executive. The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), which manages as much as $300bn (£191bn), including significant stakes in Barclays, Credit Suisse, Sainsbury’s and London department store Harrods, has named Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al-Thani as CEO. He will [...]
Supermarket backing sends Fitbug shares running riot October 22, 2014 FITBUG, a little-known Aim-listed firm that makes wearable fitness trackers, saw its shares rocket more than 350 per cent yesterday, after revealing that Sainsbury’s and a leading US retail chain would begin stocking its products next month. The Fitbug Orb (pictured), which retails for £49.95 and connects to a smartphone app to track daily routines [...]
Blackstone mulls £1.5bn takeover of drinks bottler December 7, 2014 US PRIVATE equity giant Blackstone Group is considering a £1.5bn takeover bid for Refresco Gerber, Europe’s largest soft drinks bottler, it emerged yesterday. The US investment specialist is among several interested parties weighing up bids for the Anglo-Dutch company. Blackstone’s private equity rival KKR and CVC Partners are also rumoured to be circling, with bids [...]
Tesco: Here’s what the City and analysts are saying about record annual losses April 22, 2015 As the details of Tesco's losses and its turnaround plans sink in around the City, here's the initial take from analysts, business experts and even the man funding shareholder litigation against Tesco over the profit overstatement last year that triggered it all. Louise Cooper, CooperCity – "Tesco is like Miliband – it has two kitchen [...]