Thousands of businesses to again pay property tax as business rates holiday ends June 29, 2021 Thousands of businesses will soon again face paying property taxes, as the business rates holiday comes to an end later this week. Last April the government paused business rates for the hardest hit retail, leisure and hospitality companies. Some 394,601 businesses benefitted from the rates holiday, which saved them around £13.8bn. But from 1 July, [...]
Restaurant delivery boxes are here to stay: We review 48 of them June 29, 2021 Before the pandemic, most top chefs would have turned their nose up at home delivery services. There’s the lack of control, the logistical nightmare, not to mention the wafer-thin margins. But necessity being the mother of invention has led to dozens of outstanding delivery services, and even with restaurants back open and looking forward to [...]
E-cigarette maker Juul to pay $40m over teen targeting claims June 28, 2021 E-cigarette maker Juul has agreed to pay $40m to North Carolina to settle a lawsuit by the state accusing it of marketing its products to young people. The settlement, announced on Monday by North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, is the first reached by the company with a state government. The deal also includes restrictions on sales [...]
Carnival to sell $500m in shares as cruises restart June 28, 2021 Cruise giant Carnival today said that it would sell $500m (£359.6m) worth of shares as it seeks to raise yet more cash amid the coronavirus pandemic. Over the last year the firm has already raised $2.5bn in order to stay afloat while sailings were cancelled due to travel restrictions. As of last week, however, Carnival [...]
Leon to roll out drive-thru restaurants June 28, 2021 Leon has today unveiled plans for its first drive-thru restaurant, in what should be the first step of a new expansion plan. The healthy fast food chain’s first drive-thru restaurant will in open in West Yorkshire later this year. The new restaurant will be 2,000 square feet and create 30 new jobs for the area. [...]
Greggs maintains positive sales trajectory despite shrinking pent-up demand June 28, 2021 Bakery chain Greggs has maintained a positive sales trajectory as restrictions ease, it said in its trading update today, with sales only slightly knocked by shrinking pent-up demand. The high street retailer last reported its trading performance on 10 May, at which point it had seen a strong recovery in sales levels following the easing [...]
JD Sports to buy majority stake in Spain’s Deporvillage for €140.4m June 28, 2021 Sports retail chain JD is set to buy 80 per cent of issued shares in Spain’s Deporvillage, the retailer confirmed today, through its holding company Iberian Sports Retail Group (ISRG). The deal will be worth around €140.4m, of which €40.4m has been deferred and will be paid if the business performs well in the months [...]
City Pub Group trading nears levels seen in 2019 as restrictions lift June 28, 2021 After being hammered by pandemic restrictions since last year, the City Pub Group has posted trading levels 90 per cent of levels seen in 2019. Opening the doors to 42 out of its 48 pubs, the group has reaped the rewards of some social distancing measures being relaxed on 12 April, it said in its [...]
Burberry shares fall as boss Marco Gobbetti quits June 28, 2021 Shares in Burberry tumbled this morning after chief executive Marco Gobbetti announced he was quitting the British fashion brand to return to his native Italy. The company earlier said Gobbetti would be leaving at the end of the year to take up a position that would allow him to return to Italy, adding that it [...]
Retail software firm Itim goes public in £48m London float June 28, 2021 Itim, a specialist software firm that provides services to retailers, has gone public through a £48m stock market float in London. The tech firm, which was founded in 1993 by veteran retail executive Ali Athar, will list today on London’s junior Aim market. Itim has raised £8m through the placing of 5,194,806 new ordinary shares [...]