Poundland owner set to release £10m to retailer ahead of MP questioning Retail The owner of Poundland has agreed to release around £10m of funding in order to pay the firm’s suppliers a day before its bosses are grilled by the government. Gordon Brothers, the US investment firm which owns the retail group, will unlock the funds held on Poundland’s balance sheet as the first in a series [...]
TM Lewin pivots to casualwear as AI drives dearth of new graduates Retail Shirtmaker TM Lewin is pivoting towards t-shirts and knitted sweaters as the AI-driven cutback in graduate hiring means fewer young workers need shirts and ties. The retailer, which was established in 1898, has expanded its range of casualwear since returning to British high streets after its collapse into administration at the start of the decade. [...]
Tinned tuna and hand sanitiser sales soar after shoppers told to stockpile Retail Essentials like tinned tuna and hand sanitiser began flying off of the shelves in the days following the government’s warning that Brits should start stockpiling. In the ten days after shoppers were told to build up piles of essentials, sales of hand sanitiser jumped by 83 per cent year-on-year, according to Worldpanel by Numerator. This [...]
Asda loses ground on rivals as turnaround efforts stall November 10, 2026 Asda’s turnaround efforts have stalled after the discount supermarket was the UK’s only major grocer where sales fell last month. The supermarket chain posted £4bn in total takings in the 12 weeks to 1 November, 0.5 per cent lower than the same time a year ago, according to Worldpanel. The company’s share of the grocery [...]
As it happened: Oil at lowest since August; stocks hit by US inflation shock November 10, 2026 Welcome back to City AM‘s FTSE 100 live blog. It’s Tuesday morning and UK stocks are climbing higher, with Georgian bank Lion Finance and carmaker Rolls Royce among the top risers. Tech stocks rebounded in the US overnight, despite Nvidia losing more than four per cent over its ‘honeytrap’ scandal. Oil prices are falling further [...]
An ex-DJ and a former Lord Mayor: Who is behind Poundland bidder Xyra Group? November 10, 2026 Xyra Group is pulling ahead in the race to buy Poundland. Felix Armstrong explores who is behind this little-known investment firm A former DJ, an ex-builder and the 695th Lord Mayor of the City of London walk into a boardroom. Could they walk out as the new owners of Poundland? Xyra Group, an obscure investment [...]
Shoppers hold back spending ahead of Black Friday November 10, 2026 British shoppers are holding back on spending ahead of Black Friday, dealing a further blow to retailers after they missed out on significant support at last month’s Budget. Total retail sales in the UK increased by 1.5 per cent year-on-year, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), against growth of 1.6 per cent in the [...]
Poundland ‘frontrunner’ Xyra Group asks retailer’s founder to join bid November 9, 2026 The little-known investment firm emerging as a “frontrunner” to buy Poundland has called on Steve Smith, the retailer’s founder, to bolster its bid for the struggling firm. Xyra Group Holdings, founded by 23-year-old Manvedeep Singh, has asked Smith to lend support to their £12.5m bid to keep Poundland afloat as the discount retailer veers towards [...]
As it happened: FTSE 100 up; oil falls as Trump says new Iran strikes ‘highly unlikely’ November 9, 2026 Welcome back to City AM‘s FTSE 100 live blog. It’s Monday morning and London’s blue-chip index has made gains, as investors hope to make back some of last week’s losses after a tech sell-off sparked in the US after the mid-terms spread across the Atlantic. Oil prices are falling as it becomes increasingly clear President [...]
Oxford Street pedestrianisation brings ‘staggering’ shopping boost November 9, 2026 The pedestrianisation of Oxford Street has delivered a “staggering’ boost in footfall, data compiled by the London mayor’s office has shown, as Christmas shopping could usher in a larger surge in the number of shoppers. Datasets gathered by City Hall suggest that spending and footfall soared in the first week of a traffic-free Oxford Street, [...]