Time In? Time Out’s plans for a London foodie market aren’t quite defeated yet January 24, 2018 Time Out toasted the success of its food market venture in Lisbon today, and said more openings were on the horizon including a possible site in London. The media and entertainment business is understood to be appealing the decision by Tower Hamlets council to block a market development in Shoreditch. This could put a London [...]
Pinched-for-cash Poundworld in talks with TPG for more money after poor festive trading January 18, 2018 Discount retailer Poundworld is in talks with its majority owner, US private equity giant TPG Capital, for a new cash injection after a troubling festive period. Poundworld is asking for another £30m to £40m of investment, according to Sky News, after disappointing sales and one-off costs saw its debt pile up last year. Sources close [...]
Number of UK coffee shops to increase by almost 50 per cent by 2022 January 16, 2018 The number of coffee shops in the UK will rise by almost 50 per cent in the next five years, according to a new report. Research by Allegra World Coffee Portal predicts that the total number of UK coffee shops will reach 31,400 by 2022, up from 24,061 in 2017. Last year the coffee market [...]
Carluccio’s appoints Goals Soccer Centres boss Mark Jones as CEO January 9, 2018 Deli and restaurant chain Carluccio's has announced that Mark Jones of Goals Soccer Centres is to become its new chief executive. Having announced his intention to leave Goals in October, Jones will take over at the chain of Italian eateries "in due course". He commented: "I am excited to be joining Carluccio's at this important [...]
Boots’ UK stores drag on Walgreen Boots Alliance’s international sales January 4, 2018 Boots' UK stores acted as a drag on the international sales of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter, the pharmaceutical giant said today. Internationally, the retail pharmacy arm of Walgreens Boots Alliance brought in sales of $3.1bn (£2.3bn), an increase of 4.1 per cent year-on-year. On a constant currency basis, sales fell 0.8 per [...]
Young’s pubs boss Patrick Dardis: “Smithfields is the new Covent Garden” November 16, 2017 Pub company Young’s has announced a deal to buy City favourite Smith’s of Smithfield and its sister site on Cannon Street. The acquisition was confirmed as the group reported a market-beating rise in sales across its pubs. The figures Revenue across managed pubs, which accounts for the biggest chunk of the business, was up 4.6 [...]
Nisa members have voted in favour of Co-op’s takover offer November 13, 2017 Members of convenience chain Nisa have voted to accept The Co-operative's £140m offer for the business. The offer just scraped in over the minimum 75 per cent approval rate, with 75.79 per cent in favour and 24.21 per cent voting against the Co-op’s offer. The Co-op will now acquire the business for a total of [...]
The Foschini Group buys fashion brand Hobbs as 3i exits November 7, 2017 Hobbs, the British high street fashion retailer known for being a favourite of the Duchess of Cambridge, has found a new owner in the form of South African retailer The Foschini Group (TFG). Hobbs chief executive Meg Lustman said this would help the brand to become "truly successful". "With TFG’s existing experience managing desirable brands, [...]
HMV overtakes Amazon in fight for dwindling DVD and Blu-ray sales October 30, 2017 The decline of DVDs and Blu-rays has allowed HMV to overtake Amazon to be the biggest seller of physical films in the country. HMV has fared well with new releases such as Beauty and the Beast and Logan to take its market share of physical video sales up six points to 22.5 per cent. Amazon’s [...]
Suits you: Supermarket fashion is turning heads in the UK October 24, 2017 Cheap? Check. Convenience? Check. Choice? Check. Sainsbury’s launched a rival to Savile Row in outlets this week, giving shoppers a chance to buy suits with their weekly shop. The move is a classic example of how wafer-thin margins and the dog fight for market share is forcing supermarkets to turn towards different revenue streams – [...]