Night out on the books for Waterstone’s fans October 26, 2014 A WEEK after American tourist Dave Will, of Texas, was trapped after hours in Waterstone’s book shop in Trafalgar Square and turned to Twitter for help, the chain partnered with Airbnb on Saturday night to host a sleepover for 10 bookworms and their friends. Responding innovatively to the Twitter sensation, the major chain tapped into [...]
UK house price boom bolsters web shopping October 26, 2014 HOUSE price gains helped fuel consumer spending over the past year with new research suggesting a substantial rise in internet searches for home and garden products. Total search volumes for home and garden products grew by 15 per cent in the third quarter of 2014 compared with the same quarter in 2013, figures released today [...]
Office owner Silverfleet brings in advisers to explore £300m sale or a float October 26, 2014 Silverfleet, the private equity firm which owns high street shoe retailer Office, has brought in advisers to explore the sale or float of the company. Office was bought by Silverfleet for £150m in 2010 from Scottish billionaire Sir Tom Hunter’s West Coast Capital, but could now be worth as much as £300m, according to the [...]
Top Right Group eyes up £100m events takeover October 26, 2014 EVENTS and digital publishing firm Top Right Group, jointly owned by Guardian Media Group and Apax Partners, has entered talks to buy US conference organiser Money20/20. Talks are believed to centre on plans to merge Money20/20 with Top Right’s events division i2i Events. A possible deal to buy Money20/20, first reported in the Sunday Times, [...]
Anne Richards: We need a new plan to bring women back into the square mile October 26, 2014 "It is bad, shocking, awful. Since 2008 it has got worse. As an industry we’ve managed to deter a chunk of half of the population. We’ve got to get that sorted.” Aberdeen Asset Management’s chief investment officer Anne Richards does not hold back on the City’s gender imbalance. For her entire professional life, [...]
Hotel price comparison startup Lodgeo eyes £10m fundraise after launch October 26, 2014 Lodgeo, the recently launched price comparison mobile app for hotel rooms, is preparing to raise up to £10m through a funding round advised by Catalyst Corporate Finance. The app was launched last month with £2m in funding from Javest Investment fund, the Amsterdam venture capital fund, and a number of named individual investors. Lodgeo’s founder [...]
PwC and MarketInvoice to give small firms investment boost October 26, 2014 AN AGREEMENT between PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and online debt market MarketInvoice, announced today, plans to give businesses extra borrowing options. PwC will inform its clients about MarketInvoice’s financing services and the online firm will refer its clients to the PwC My Financepartner team – accountants who specialise in helping early- to mid-stage firms. MarketInvoice provides an [...]
Fast internet is top priority for home buyers October 26, 2014 A RELIABLE, high speed broadband connection is an increasingly important factor for potential property buyers and renters. Research released today by the Halifax shows that 20 per cent of UK adults are prepared to pay more for a home with a good broadband connection. Of those surveyed, 18 per cent said it was a consideration [...]
City Moves for 27 October 2014 | Who’s switching jobs October 26, 2014 PwC The professional services firm has appointed Tim Reay as a director of its pensions team. Reay has 30 years of experience, and joins from Aeon Hewitt. He is also the treasurer and former chairman of the International Employee Benefits Association. Purplebricks.com Former Capita boss Paul Pindar, and Nick Discombe, former chief executive of several [...]
Armadale gold mine sees value jump to $55.3m October 26, 2014 INVESTMENT company Armadale Capital has revealed that its Mpokoto Gold Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo has increased in post-tax value by 68 per cent to $55.3m (£38.4m). The mine, which was purchased by Armadale in August 2013, was previously valued at $33m in a scoping study carried out in April. The new value, [...]