Four Seasons facing rising bills as hedge funds jostle for control December 4, 2016 Unsustainable debt and a looming £26m interest payment have thrown the future of care home operator Four Seasons in to doubt. Last week it was revealed Four Seasons lost £27.4m in the three months to the end of September but must pay £52m interest on its debt every year. It currently has cash reserves of just £51.3m [...]
TUI Group shifts its tourist destinations focus to match changing demand after terrorist attacks hit Eastern Mediterranean December 4, 2016 Flexibility on destinations has been vital to strategy for the world’s biggest tourism operator TUI Group ahead of its full-year results, as customer demand changes in the wake of terrorist attacks and instability in formerly popular destinations. Recent terrorist attacks and a deteriorating security situation have dampened demand in the eastern Mediterranean, which includes countries [...]
Private equity groups circle Oasis, Warehouse and Coast December 4, 2016 Private equity groups are reportedly interested in buying up fashion brands Warehouse, Oasis and Coast, also known as the Aurora Fashion Group. The group recently appointed PwC to conduct a "strategic review" for the business, and is thought to be seeking a sale worth £100m. Read more: MPs pay surprise visit to Sports Direct's Shirebrook warehouse [...]
BHS pensions lifeboat fights ballooning bill from administrators Duff & Phelps December 4, 2016 The BHS pensions lifeboat has vetoed an invoice put forward by the collapsed retailer's administrators, Duff & Phelps. Duff & Phelps initially estimated a fee of £3.5m for its work on BHS, but later increased its fee to £4.1m. In a meeting of creditors on 15 November, the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) – BHS' largest creditor [...]
Sports Direct is in the hot seat again this week December 4, 2016 Sports Direct will be in the spotlight again this week as it reports its interims on Thursday. Analysts are predicting chief executive Mike Ashley will announce a profit fall of 25 per cent to £170m. The City will also be looking for signs that Sports Direct is improving its corporate governance, something the retailer promised to focus [...]
Small Business Saturday: How London celebrated local businesses on the day December 3, 2016 If you've had an eye on Twitter, you may have noticed Small Business Saturday has been going on today. And as an opportunity for all of the nation to get out and support their local firms, Londoners have been doing just that. Here's what's been happening for Small Business Saturday in London: Read more: Small Business [...]
Today’s the day: Small Business Saturday is back for a fourth time December 3, 2016 Small businesses in London: brace yourselves for a very busy day. For Small Business Saturday has arrived and the nation is being encouraged to shop local and support their small firms. The UK is home to 5.5m small businesses and they're responsible for 60 per cent of private sector employment and contribute £1.8 trillion in turnover [...]
This map of European breweries shows the UK is the drunk hipster of Europe December 2, 2016 Forget the poor man of Europe – the UK is the drunk hipster of Europe, it turns out, after figures showed Britain has more microbreweries than any other country. Yes, figures from The Brewers of Europe showed while Germany brews more beer than any other nation, at 95.6m hectolitres, the UK has more than 1,500 microbreweries. [...]
Chanel kicks up a stink over a high speed train planned to run through its perfume field December 2, 2016 Picture the scene: fragrant lavender fields, hill sides blooming with wild flowers and.. a train plundering through at high speed. Well that's what's planned for the Provencal fields of Grasse and one rather big business isn't too happy about it. Chanel's kicking up a stink and has threatened to quit Grasse – often referred to [...]
The Children’s Food Campaign says the FDF’s top UK brands don’t oppose the sugary drinks tax, so the FDF shouldn’t either December 2, 2016 The Children's Food Campaign (CFC) has asked the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) to stop opposing the tax on sugary drinks, claiming its top UK member brands are less aggressively opposed to the duty than the trade association. Out of 55 FDF members contacted by CFC, 14 gave full responses, including Birdseye, Slimfast, Wrigleys, Mars, Weetabix and Haribo. Seven [...]