Cath Kidston customers go potty for new Winnie-the-Pooh range September 27, 2016 Cath Kidston has launched its collaborative designs with Disney’s Winnie-the-Pooh, with most products selling out within hours. The brand experienced its largest online full price sales to date and traffic on the website hit record highs at 3500 per cent more visitors than usual. Around one mug was sold every minute (58 per hour) and there [...]
Irn Bru maker AG Barr slams sugar tax and announces plans to shed 10 per cent of workforce September 27, 2016 Irn Bru and Rubicon maker AG Barr today announced it will shed 10 per cent of its total workforce in a major company shake-up. The “business-wide reorganisation” will lead to around 90 job losses, which will likely be concentrated in its commercial, supply chain and central operations, by the end of the current financial year. AG [...]
Second chance for BHS? An open letter to David Anderson, managing director of the newly online-only retailer September 27, 2016 Dear David Anderson, Whether it’s BHS or Woolworths, we all love a good phoenix from the ashes story, especially when it involves a great British brand. News that BHS is to be reincarnated online has been met with a cautious welcome. Cautious because the challenges ahead are considerable: in addition to the reputational damage the [...]
House of Fraser sales flat as it warns on a volatile trading environment that isn’t going away September 27, 2016 House of Fraser announced sales in the first half of the financial year were unchanged on a year ago, warning that it faces a "volatile trading environment" that is unlikely to change. Home was House of Fraser's strongest category, with sales for the 26 weeks to 30 July increasing by 4.5 per cent. But the House [...]
Boohoo upgrades forecast for the second time this year September 27, 2016 Online fashion retailer Boohoo upgraded its forecasts again today after announcing bumper sales growth and profits for the six months to the end of August. Boohoo upgraded its full-year sales guidance for the second time in two months. At the beginning of August, the online retailer upped its expected sales growth to between 28 per cent [...]
Four things you need to know ahead of tomorrow’s Megabrew vote September 27, 2016 Tomorrow morning, SABMiller shareholders will cast their final votes at a High Court meeting on whether to give the green light to a £79bn takeover from the world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev. If the tie-up has escaped your attention so far, rest assured: you need to know about it. To help you catch up, here [...]
Alton Towers owner Merlin just got slapped with a £5m fine for the Smiler rollercoaster crash September 27, 2016 Alton Towers owner Merlin Attractions has been handed a £5m fine over a crash on one of its rollercoasters last year that left five people with serious injuries. Two female passengers were forced to undergo leg amputations and three others were also seriously injured when their carriage collided with a stationary carriage on the same track. [...]
Thomas Cook bookings dip hit by volatility in Turkey September 27, 2016 Travel company Thomas Cook said today that trading for summer 2016 had gone as expected, with strong demand for most destinations – but not for Turkey. Tourist numbers in the country have plummeted as a result of terrorist attacks and political upheaval. Bookings were up by eight per cent when Turkey was excluded, driven by demand [...]
Free from foods set to soar as four in 10 Britons opt for specialised diets, according to Nielsen September 27, 2016 More than 40 per cent of Britons now avoid certain foods and followed specialised eating regimes such as gluten, sugar or hormone-free diets, according to data from Nielsen. Almost half (49 per cent) of people now avoid foods containing antibiotics or hormones, while 45 per cent opt out of eating artificial additives and 42 per [...]
Greater devolution could boost English tourism and encourage more staycations, the Local Government Association has argued September 27, 2016 Greater devolution could help English tourism thrive as it would give local bodies the means to turn their areas into travel hotspots, the Local Government Association (LGA) has said today. Striking more devolution deals to improve regional transport, infrastructure and business support — all key to boosting tourism — could give local groups such as combined [...]