West End Christmas intake to be squeezed by pandemic and cost of living at £1.55bn November 3, 2022 West End Christmas intake is set to be a quarter up from last year but still almost 30 per cent down on pre-Covid levels. Around £1.55bn is set to be splashed out in the heart of London’s shopping district, as the capital bounces back from the pandemic in a restriction-free Christmas. The cost of living [...]
Working from home sees London karaoke bars enjoy rise in Sunday Fundays November 3, 2022 Londoners are staving off the Sunday Blues with karaoke nights – taking advantage of an extra lie-in on work-from-home Monday mornings. Charlie Elek, the managing director of Lucky Voice, a capital-focussed karaoke chain, told CityA.M. that a rise in hybrid working had “worked in our favour”. The number of punters through the door at his [...]
Sainsbury’s profits dip as supermarket giant battles to keep prices low November 3, 2022 Sainsbury’s has posted subdued half-year profits, after taking a hit to keep prices competitive for customers and boost pay for staff. The supermarket giant, which also owns Argos, said underlying pre-tax profit dipped eight per cent to £340m over the half-year to 17 September , compared with the same period last year. It had previously [...]
Canada Goose and Estee Lauder gloomy forecasts amid Covid curbs in China November 2, 2022 Coat maker Canada Goose and make-up seller Estee Lauder both issued stark sales warnings yesterday due to Covid curbs in China. It comes as Chinese authorities have set out a seven-day lockdown in Zhengzhou, impacting the world’s largest iPhone factory. Canada Goose said yesterday that it was slashing its full-year revenue forecast due to pandemic-linked [...]
Iceland food boss ‘working day and night’ to keep pint of milk under £1 but price rises ‘will get worse’ November 2, 2022 The boss of Iceland has said he “doesn’t know” whether the price of a pint of milk can be kept under a pound, but is “working day and night” to stop it. Richard Walker made his comments on Amol Rajan’s podcast this morning, after joining a campaign to expand free school meals to children whose [...]
Shein sets up shop in Japan with physical store to boost online brand November 2, 2022 Fast fashion behemoth Shein is to set up shop at its first permanent brick-and-mortar store in Tokyo. The Chinese retailer announced it would be opening a store in the Harajuku fashion district later this month, according to the Reuters news agency. Shein is looking to push its online brand by having a physical footprint, with [...]
Simpson’s Tavern: Crowdfunder raises nearly £20K in less than 24 hours November 2, 2022 A crowdfunding campaign to save Simpson’s Tavern has raised almost £20,000 in just 24 hours since it began in earnest. Simpson’s, which has sat off Cornhill since 1757 and become a City institution, has been served a winding up petition as a result of rent arrears accrued during the pandemic. Whilst many landlords have chosen [...]
Metro Bank, NatWest and Hospitality UK among top employers to back fertility pledge November 2, 2022 Metro Bank, NatWest, the Co-op, Channel 4, and UK Hospitality are among major employers backing a pledge to help millions going through fertility treatment. A new campaign launched today in Parliament by the MP for Cities of London and Westminster, Nickie Aiken, hopes to support more than 3.5m people who can’t conceive naturally. The Fertility [...]
Sainsbury’s adds 18,000 Christmas jobs in hiring spree November 2, 2022 Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has announced plans to hire 18,000 seasonal staff this year. The hiring spree includes 15,000 roles at Sainsbury’s, 2,000 at Argos and 1,000 in logistics. Temporary staff will work up until 7 January 2023 with roles including fixed term contracts of between three and 12 weeks. It comes as supermarkets are battling [...]
Expensive bites for millions of Brits as food inflation soars to record 11.6 per cent November 2, 2022 With even basics such as tea bags, milk and sugar seeing significant price rises, food inflation has soared to a record 11.6 per cent in October. Overall shop prices are now 6.6 per cent higher than they were this time last year – also a record – but food inflation jumped well above September’s 10.6 [...]