LVMH agrees to peace deal with Hermes family September 3, 2014 FRANCE’S richest man Bernard Arnault yesterday agreed to relinquish most of his $7.5bn (£4.5bn) holding in luxury goods maker Hermes International, bringing to an end a bitter four-year battle. Arnault’s LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton agreed to distribute most of its 23.2 per cent stake in Hermes among its shareholders and not to acquire any [...]
McCarthy & Stone set to splurge £2bn on land as revenues jump September 3, 2014 Rrtirement home-builder McCarthy & Stone is to step up its investment in land to £2bn over the next four years as it seeks to tap into a growing demand from over 65s needing to downsize. The company, which has raised its target from £1.5bn last year, is planning to double in size and develop more [...]
Galliford Try wins two affordable housing deals in London and Middlesbrough September 3, 2014 Galliford Try said yesterday that it had won two affordable housing contracts in east London and in Middlesbrough, in the north east, worth £106m. The FTSE 250 housing and construction group has been hired by Notting Hill Housing to build Great Eastern Quays, an £81m regeneration scheme in London’s Royal Docks that will have up [...]
American Apparel ad banned for inappropriate portrayal of young women in schoolwear promotion September 3, 2014 US clothes retailer American Apparel was yesterday reprimanded by the advertising watchdog for an advert showing a girl leaning over and revealing her underwear. The image had been designed to promote the brand’s schoolwear. The Advertising Standards Agency said the adverts had the “potential to normalise predatory sexual behaviour” towards young women. It is the [...]
Germany’s €6bn mega-float puts London on notice September 3, 2014 Europe’s biggest online fashion player Zalando, a rival to Britain’s Asos, plans to raise more than €500m (£399m) to fund its expansion by listing a stake on the Frankfurt stock exchange. The announcement comes as London’s tech community launches a fight back to maintain its lead over its European rivals. Yesterday, the Coalition for a [...]
Pure Gym gets back on its bike and plots overseas expansion September 3, 2014 Budget fitness chain Pure Gym is shaking off its £300m failed merger with Gym Group by pushing ahead with ambitious expansion plans and hunting for smaller acquisitions. Founder Peter Roberts said yesterday that it expected to grow from 70 clubs to 90 by the end of the year, as well as securing its first two [...]
CityFibre rolling out in Aberdeen September 3, 2014 WHOLESALE fibre operator CityFibre will begin building out a new fibre network in Aberdeen by Christmas, with the goal of bringing superfast gigabit fibre to the Scottish city. Aberdeen will bring CityFibre’s network – which it resells as an alternative to BT, to councils, businesses and internet providers (ISPs) – to more than 57 towns [...]
Balderton bets on 3D printing September 3, 2014 BALDERTON Capital yesterday led a $4.5m (£2.7m) investment on a 3D printing firm flourishing in London. 3D Hubs, founded in Amsterdam in August 2014, is a 3D printing network of 7,000 printers where anyone can log on, find a nearby printer and print out their designs. “We see the UK as one of the biggest [...]
Building revival helps Ashtead to raise forecast September 3, 2014 BRITISH industrial equipment hire group Ashtead yesterday raised its full-year guidance after posting a 33 percent rise in first-quarter pre-tax profits on strong demand from the United States and the UK. Chief executive Geoff Drabble said he now anticipated the company’s full year results would be ahead of previous expectations and increased its plans for [...]
Full-year profit growth forecast shortfall weighs on Hargreaves September 3, 2014 UK FINANCIAL adviser Hargreaves Lansdown yesterday saw its share price fall by almost six per cent after it reported that full-year profit growth was lightly short of expectations. While revenues rose eight per cent to £291.9m, they were short of the £342m expected by the market. Pre-tax profit, up seven per cent at £195.2m, lagged [...]