Spotify’s revenue slow down will lead to 600 job losses, as tech giant becomes the latest to cull staff January 23, 2023 Spotify will be cutting its global workforce by nearly six per cent with around 600 people expected to lose their jobs. The music streaming platform has joined fellow tech giants including Amazon, Google, Meta and Twitter in laying off staff, with tens-of-thousands of workers being laid off in recent weeks. Last November Meta, the owner [...]
Chapel Down shows English wine still has its fizz with bumper results January 23, 2023 The world is waking up to sparkling wine from England, new results from flagship brand Chapel Down suggest. A new trading update from the Kent-based wine producer reports a 164 per cent increase in exports, indicating a growing market for English sparkling wine overseas. Domestic revenues paint a similarly rosy picture, with off-trade sparkling wine [...]
Top Gun: Maverick and pricier tickets help Everyman cinemas post 75 per cent boom in earnings January 23, 2023 Blockbuster movie Top Gun: Maverick helped boost Everyman Media’s revenues by 62 per cent as Brits continue to embrace cinema going as an affordable luxury. The company, which has 14 of its 38 cinemas in greater London, announced its annual update to December, reporting revenue of £79.7m which is up from the previous covid-impacted year [...]
Glass half-full: Why Fuller’s chief remains optimistic despite strikes leaving a £4m dent in Christmas sales January 23, 2023 Pub chain Fuller’s lost £4m in sales due to the impact of strikes over Christmas and new year, as its chief warned of lower expectations for the full year. Chiswick-based Fuller, Smith and Turner reported in the 43 weeks to January that like-for-like sales were up a fifth on the Covid-impacted previous year – despite [...]
Slow fashion: Retailers embrace second-hand clothing to draw in thrifty eco-conscious fashion lovers January 23, 2023 High street retailers are following in the footsteps of their online rivals, offering more second-hand clothes to lure in shoppers wanting to steer clear of fast fashion and hunt for bargains amid a cost of living crisis. The second-hand clothing market has exploded over the last decade to an estimated £6.5bn last year, largely thanks [...]
KERB: How London street food giant behind Seven Dials Market aims to make Berlin taste better January 23, 2023 The London street food favourite behind Seven Dials Market, KERB, is expanding via a venue in Berlin’s famous Potsdamer Platz. German foodies will be able to indulge their palates across a two-story street food market which is set to open in the Sony Centre by next year. The market will showcase 12 independent food vendors [...]
Cocktail of costs: How inflation is expected to squeeze spirit-maker Diageo’s sales and profit despite Christmas boost January 20, 2023 Spirits giant Diageo is expected to report a slowdown in sales and profits next week as consumer spending steadies. However, analysts have predicted that the Johnnie Walker and Baileys maker could deliver a resilient showing when it reveals its half-year update to shareholders on Thursday, January 26. A consensus of analysts have predicted that the [...]
Seraphine sells: Maternity brand worn by celebrities including Kate Middleton and Kate Winslet to be taken private in £15.3m deal January 20, 2023 The board of Purple Bidco, owned by Mayfair Equity, and directors of Seraphine have agreed to buy out the maternity clothing company in a deal which values the celebrity fashion favourite at £15.3m. The offer represents a 206 per cent premium of the firm’s share price, with each share being sold for 30p cash in [...]
Retailers blame Royal Mail strikes for Brits abandoning online shopping in the run up to Christmas January 20, 2023 Thousands of Brits appear to have abandoned online purchases following a series of strikes by Royal Mail employees, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Figures released by the ONS show that the proportion of online sales slipped by 0.5 per cent to 25.4 per cent in December. Retailers laid the blame on [...]
Deliveroo: UK orders pass £1bn mark as takeaway giant remains upbeat about 2023 January 19, 2023 Quarterly orders on Deliveroo in the UK and Ireland passed the £1bn mark for the first time at the end of last year, the takeaway giant reported today, adding that it was confident about the year ahead despite much economic uncertainty. The food delivery company reported a seven per cent increase in gross transaction value [...]