Wine sector reeling as price of a bottle set to be taxed 20 per cent more come August July 4, 2023 Wine lovers will be taxed 20 per cent more on their favourite bottle of red or white in a month’s time, as the government steams ahead with its alcohol duty tax hikes, spelling further pain for customers and businesses. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced the measures as part of the Spring Budget back in March, which [...]
Brits spend £4.1bn drinking beer at home during cost of living and price of a pint crises July 4, 2023 Brits are staying at home and cracking open cold beers from the fridge, as twin cost of living and price of a pint crises change drinkers’ habits. New research out today show a 25 per cent surge in beer sales in supermarkets and shops outside local boozers, during the cost of living crisis. While the [...]
Sainsbury’s: ‘Food inflation starting to fall’ as supermarket giant reports grocery sales surge by 11 per cent July 4, 2023 Sainsbury’s has claimed “food inflation is starting to fall” as it recorded an 11 per cent hike in grocery sales in the first leg of the year. The ‘Big Four’ grocer, recorded an inflation-led 9.8 per cent like-for like-increase in total retail sales excluding fuel in the first quarter of the year up from 4 [...]
Le Pain Quotidien operator crashes into administration with only one London store to survive July 3, 2023 A City hotspot for morning coffee, Le Pain Quotidien, has closed all but one of its sites across London, in another fatal blow for the city’s hospitality sector. The Belgian coffee chain, which operates from eight sites across the capital, including a cafe on Fish Street Hill in Monument, has closed all of its sites [...]
Co-Op to offer water burials in bid to make funerals more sustainable July 3, 2023 Co-op Funeralcare has announced plans to offer a new form of burial as a sustainable alternative to traditional burials or cremation. The UK’s largest funeral provider announced on Sunday that it will introduce the practice, called resomation – also known as water cremation or alkaline hydrolysis – later this year. The practice consists of the [...]
‘Paper’ bottle maker backed by Diageo secures £20m in fresh funding round July 3, 2023 A sustainable packaging business backed by Diageo, is gearing up for a new funding round in efforts to deliver a commercial product line. Pulpex said it has secured financing from CMPC, a Chilean pulp and paper company, to enable the production and supply of over 2bn paper bottles to consumer brands worldwide by 2028. Sources [...]
Sainsbury’s results: Will efforts to keep prices low pay off? July 3, 2023 Investors will turn their focus to Sainsbury’s first quarter trading update on Tuesday to see how shoppers are reacting to the impact of food inflation amid the cost of living crisis. The supermarket is expected to post a jump in revenues driven by higher grocery sales over the quarter to June. Analysts at Shore and [...]
Retailer insolvencies jump to higher level than pandemic as brands buckle under economic pressure July 3, 2023 A squeeze on shoppers’ finances has increased the number of retailers being plunged into hot water, new research shows, as the cost of living crisis continues to decimate businesses. As inflation sits at a sticky 8.7 per cent, the number of retailers entering insolvency jumped 56 per cent in the past year, according to figures [...]
No teas or coffees for shareholders at M&S AGM as chairman tells them to go digital July 2, 2023 Attendees of the Marks & Spencer AGM on Tuesday will not be served any refreshments or get a chance to speak to bosses face to face, as it looks to take the event totally digital. The Percy Pig maker had advised shareholders not to travel to the company’s AGM on Tuesday, with shareholders who do [...]
Heartwood Collection secures £100m cash injection as it steams ahead with ‘pubs with room’ expansion July 2, 2023 Hospitality chain Heartwood Collection, formally known as Brasserie Bar Co, has secured £100m of additional funding as it steams ahead with its growth plans. In June, the pub and restaurant chain revealed a major revamp which saw the hospitality group expand into the pubs with rooms market. Last year, Brasserie Bar Co was snapped up [...]