Baroness Ros Altmann: I still expect Sir Philip Green to sort BHS pension deficit November 28, 2016 Some people may have abandoned hope of the BHS pension deficit being plugged, but a former pensions minister has revealed she still has faith in Sir Philip Green being true to his word. Baroness Ros Altmann has said that, although the retailer's collapse while it was running a pension deficit worth £571m had shaken people's trust in defined [...]
BrightHouse is working to recover sales, but the rent-to-own sector is still taking hits from FCA rulings November 27, 2016 BrightHouse is believed to be investing in new technology that will speed up its sales process after taking hits from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), but a report on the company's operations is rumoured to be published this week, raising fears of bondholders. Formerly known as Crazy George's, BrightHouse is part of a controversial industry [...]
Ladbrokes Coral could be in line to table a £2bn bid for Australian betting company Tabcorp November 27, 2016 Ladbrokes Coral Group could be in line to launch a bid for Australian betting company Tabcorp, in a deal worth over £2bn. Advisers for the bid have been hired, according to reports in the Mail on Sunday. Ladbrokes Coral Group declined to comment. Tabcorp, which reported a market capitalisation of AU$3.8 (around £2.3bn) in its [...]
Marston’s broad base of casual dining pubs creates new opportunities and steers clear of industry headwinds November 27, 2016 City centres like London are oversaturated with pubs and casual dining restaurants, but investing outside the obvious locations opens up new opportunities, according to Marston's chief executive Ralph Findlay. While the company's city centre pubs are performing well, analysts said Marston's broad geographic base is what will help the company meet the cost pressures and headwinds facing the industry. Instead of [...]
High street footfall increased as consumers looked to do more than shop on Black Friday November 27, 2016 High street footfall had a shocking Black Friday comeback as British consumers looked for an "experience" with their shopping trip, new research suggests. Online sales fell well below expectations, increasing just 6.7 per cent and failing to meet both the forecast of 25 per cent and the 31 per cent rise in 2015. At the same time, high street footfall was [...]
House of Fraser CEO Nigel Oddy has resigned after less than two years at the helm as Christmas trading looms November 27, 2016 House of Fraser chief executive Nigel Oddy has resigned less than two years after taking up the post, leaving the retailer hunting for a new boss at the start of the vital Christmas trading period. Oddy will leave at some point in the new year once the company’s board has found his replacement, the company confirmed. [...]
Network Rail reveals huge growth in retail sales at London’s railway stations November 25, 2016 Retail sales at London's railway stations have grown at a titanic 17 times the high-street average, despite the number of passengers visiting them remaining the same. Sales during the three months since Britain's vote to leave the EU grew at 3.7 per cent across Network Rail's 10 London stations. This compares with high-street growth of just [...]
Black Friday 2016: Customers of this lender are spending £32,000 a minute November 25, 2016 Nationwide card holders are spending £32,000 a minute in the Black Friday sales. The building society said that between midnight and 8:30am today customers had shelled out £16.3m, an increase on last year's spend. Read more: The best Black Friday deals on consoles and games More than 400,000 transactions have taken place – up 50 per cent [...]
Marmite owner Unilever vows to appeal €590m Brazilian tax ruling November 25, 2016 Unilever's share price fell during mid-morning trading after revealing it had received an "adverse judgement" from Brazilian courts in relation to a €590m (£504m) indirect tax case. The Anglo-Dutch consumer giant warned in October that a case in Brazil was ongoing, although it stressed "we continue to believe that our case is strong". Read more: Was Marmite-gate [...]
Black Friday: These are the top selling items at John Lewis right now November 25, 2016 John Lewis opened its stores at 8am this morning and has been selling items at Black Friday prices since midnight – here are the products people are loving: Sonos Play 1 is the biggest seller in tech The Legos Simpsons house is the best-selling item by value Marc Jacobs perfume has had the most units [...]