Laphroaig turns to cocktails to drive growth September 10, 2026 The Scotch whisky industry faces well-documented challenges. Changing consumer habits and increased competition mean even the most storied brands must adopt new strategies to keep up. Laphroaig is one of the most established brands in the Scotch industry, and there’s not a single bar in the country that doesn’t have a bottle firmly established on [...]
Hospitality sector blasts Burnham’s uncapped tourist tax September 10, 2026 The hospitality sector has blasted proposals from Andy Burnham’s government to introduce a fresh tax on tourists. The industry has been left reeling after the government confirmed a new overnight levy on tourists that will have no upper cap. Regional authorities are set to be handed the power to introduce a levy to support regional [...]
Primark sales slip as owner dresses up retailer for demerger September 10, 2026 Primark has seen its sales slip due to heatwaves and “weak” consumer spending, despite efforts by its owner to revamp the discount clothes seller as it prepares to be spun off. Associated British Foods (ABF), the FTSE 100 consumer goods giant which owns Primark, said it is working “at pace” to improve the retailer ahead [...]
Accel-KKR swoops on AIM construction software firm for £208m September 10, 2026 Private equity giant Accel-KKR has struck a deal to buy an AIM-listed construction software company in the latest of a wave of takeovers on the London Stock Exchange this year. The group has snapped up Eleco for £207.6m in a deal backed by the company’s board. Shareholders are in line for a 235p per share [...]
John Lewis posts £120m loss as Labour tax raid pushes up costs September 10, 2026 The owner of John Lewis fell to a loss of more than £120m in the first half of its trading year as the retail giant hit out at Labour tax raids for “the increased costs of doing business”. The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns Waitrose, posted a pre-tax loss of £124m, 41 per cent [...]
Here’s to the quiet heroism of county cricket: Pride, jeopardy and extraordinary matches September 10, 2026 While the world’s white-ball franchise leagues flash past in a blur of sixes, jazzy uniforms and fireworks, England’s red-ball heartbeat, the County Championship, keeps thumping, writes Ed Warner. We painted the County Ground in Hove yellow on Tuesday to celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of John Wisden just under a mile away in Crown [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 dives as oil marches to $106; Trump threatens long war September 10, 2026 Welcome back to City AM’s FTSE 100 liveblog. The UK’s blue-chip index shed as much as 0.4 per cent on Thursday morning, as Associated British Foods’ 11 per cent dip cancelled out modest gains from London’s oil majors and consumer giants like JD Sports and Whitbread. Despite recent expectations that the Iran war is far [...]
Pernod Ricard’s results highlight the challenges for Scotch September 10, 2026 In this month’s issue of Whisky Business, Ian Fraser takes a look at the results of the drinks giant Pernod Ricard and how the company is dealing with the headwinds hitting the sector. Scotch whisky makes up roughly a quarter (23 per cent) of Pernod Ricard’s global sales, but barely got a look-in at the Paris-based [...]
Royal Antwerp case shows European sport ought to copy US interventionist approach September 10, 2026 Football fans digesting doom-laden commentary on the Royal Antwerp FC case on the legality of Uefa’s homegrown player regulations may be forgiven for recalling Brenda from Bristol’s reaction to the calling of general elections: “What, another one?” In recent years, legal challenges before European and national courts have sought to strike down various football regulations, [...]
Number of parents at edge of £100k tax trap to ‘grow dramatically’ September 10, 2026 The number of parents grouping just under the £100,000 ‘tax trap’ salary in order to maintain access to free childcare will “grow dramatically”, tax researchers have warned, while some households continue to claim the benefit despite earning above the income threshold. The Centre for the Analysis of Taxation (Centax) has estimated that there could be [...]