West End has 109 per cent sales boost but retail leaders call for ‘urgent’ business reform October 10, 2022 West End retailers are calling for fresh support and radical reform to help continue their pandemic recovery. The organisation representing 600 outlets and hospitality firms in Bond St, Oxford St, Regent St and Mayfair announced the district is returning to pre-coronavirus levels, but that it still needs help to stop it faltering. The New West [...]
Morrisons one step closer to watchdog green light for McColl’s takeover October 10, 2022 The competition watchdog has said it is minded to accept proposals from Morrisons that would alleviate any concerns over higher prices for consumers amid its takeover of McColl’s. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had raised competition concerns regarding a small number of areas amid the supermarket’s £190m takeover of the beleaguered convenience store chain. [...]
Hollywood Bowl eyes expansion to more than 110 centres in UK and Canada October 10, 2022 Hollywood Bowl has said it sees “a significant opportunity” to roll out its leisure business to more than 110 centres across the UK and Canada. In a trading update on Monday, the bowling alley operator said it was eyeing expansion opportunities across its three experiential brands, Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars in the UK and Splitsville [...]
Last orders: Pub numbers sink amid calls for further support October 10, 2022 The number of pubs vanishing from communities in England and Wales increased by 50 per cent in the last three months, according to new data, amid warnings that more must be done to protect the great British institution. During the three months to the end of September, 150 pubs were either demolished or converted into other [...]
Quiz reaps rewards of return of party season October 10, 2022 Quiz has continued to back its come-back story as the fashion chain posts higher sales after shoppers have rushed to stock up their party wardrobes after the pandemic. In a trading update for April to September, the once struggling retailer posted total revenues of £49.4m, 37.2 per cent higher than the year before. Demand for [...]
Joules: CVA one of ‘potential options’ as retailer steams ahead with turnaround plan October 10, 2022 Joules has acknowledged a CVA is one of a number of “potential options” it may opt for as it seeks to turn around the fortunes of the beleaguered lifestyle retailer. Sky News had reported that the struggling firm had been working with Interpath Advisory to discuss using a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA), with job losses [...]
London start-up founders reap rewards of almost £200m in loans October 10, 2022 London has received more start-up loan cash than anywhere else in the country after a decade of a programme supporting entrepreneurs. Founders in the capital have received £187.1m through the government backed Start Up Loan scheme, with businesses across the country being provided with loans and mentoring. The scheme has delivered more than 97,000 loans [...]
Netflix banks £1.4bn from British subscribers as eyes turn to titan’s next results October 9, 2022 Netflix raked in almost £1.4bn last year from its British subscribers, in the first tranche of publicly issued figures for the country. The US streaming titan said it amassed £1.38bn in revenue for the year ending 31 December 2021, in annual accounts filed in London at the end of last week. After previously including UK [...]
Every little helps: Tesco reboots ‘kids eat for free’ scheme amid cost of living pressures October 7, 2022 Tesco has announced it will be bringing back its Kids Eat Free scheme during the October half-term, as the cost of living crunch continues to batter Brits. The offer means parents can spend as little as 60p to claim one free child’s meal worth up to £3.25 when showing their Clubcard at checkout. To cover [...]
Tim Martin hits out at UK’s Covid policies as Wetherspoons sales linger below pre-pandemic levels October 7, 2022 JD Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin has hit out at the UK’s Covid restrictions after warning the pub group is still suffering from the adverse effects of Covid-19. The pub company said its sales had failed to return to pre-pandemic levels as it posted losses of £30.4m for the past financial year, on the back of [...]