Bargain bin: Topshop’s former Oxford Street site on sale for £420m May 2, 2021 For years it was the jewel in the crown of Sir Philip Green’s retail empire. But with the collapse of Arcadia last November, the former home of Topshop on Oxford Street is now on the market for a cool £420m. Marketing materials seen by The Times suggest the property will offer a “new age retail [...]
Thousands hit the dance floor in Liverpool to party like it’s 2019 May 1, 2021 Thousands of clubbers returned to the dance floor last night for a Covid safety pilot event in Liverpool that saw partygoers head to a nightclub mask-free and with no social distancing. Some 3,000 individuals turned out for the event, which took place at Circus nightclub in Liverpool, and required ticket holders to provide proof of [...]
Boom time for Boohoo: Online retail giant to unveil soaring lockdown sales April 30, 2021 Boohoo is expected to reveal a surge in sales as house-bound shoppers swapped dresses for jogging bottoms. The online retailer will also unveil the initial impact of its rescue deals for the Debenhams and three Arcadia brands – Dorothy Perkins, Burton and Wallis – which it snapped up earlier this year. Investors will be hopeful [...]
Exclusive: Human error and lack of robots threaten booming e-com space April 30, 2021 The pandemic has resulted in changing consumer behaviours which may have crushed many shops and retail businesses, but it also brought about new opportunities for retailers, particularly when it comes to going expanding their reach, diversifying their clientbase and offering products and services online. However, retailers will only succeed in the space if they ensure [...]
Covid wipes £9m per hour off UK pub and restaurant sales – totalling £81bn in a year April 30, 2021 The Covid-19 pandemic has wiped £80.8bn off UK pub and restaurant sales after venues were forced to close or operate under strict restrictions for much of the last 12 months. The latest figures showed that sales from the start of April 2020 – a week after the first lockdown began – to the end of [...]
Corona Impact Series: How the chronicle of a storyteller from Dalston turned into a virtual tale April 30, 2021 In this series, City A.M. looks at the financial and economic impact of the ongoing pandemic on a range of small and medium-sized businesses across London. This week: How a creative provider of experience in East London was pushed to go entirely digital overnight, without losing its authenticity and immersiveness. “As Covid hit and the bottom fell out [...]
Nestle buys health brands from US nutrition firm The Bountiful Company for $5.75bn April 30, 2021 Food and drink giant Nestle has bought a chunk of health brands from US nutrition and supplement firm The Bountiful Company for $5.75bn. The conglomerate announced this morning that it has entered into an agreement with KKR to buy brands including Natures Bounty, Solgar, Osteo Bi-Flex and Puritan’s Pride, as well as the company’s US [...]
Finance chief quits high street pawnbroker H&T Group as business refocuses April 30, 2021 High street pawnbroker H&T Group this morning announced the departure of its chief financial officer to allow it to focus on the “future needs and priorities of the business”. Finance chief Richard Withers will leave the business at the end of next month after just three years in the role. The move is due to [...]
Lockdown winner Amazon made $13,000 PER SECOND in first quarter sales as profits hit record $8.1bn April 30, 2021 Amazon cemented its position as one of the biggest winners of the pandemic, posting record first quarter profits of $8.1bn last night off the back of making $13,000 in sales ever second. And it’s far from over yet. The e-commerce giant signalled that consumers would keep spending in a growing US economy and converts to [...]
Corona Impact Series: How a Brixton coffee roaster brew up plans for a radical transformation during lockdown April 29, 2021 In this series, City A.M. looks at the financial and economic impact of the ongoing pandemic on a range of small and medium-sized businesses across London. Today: Volcano Coffee Works entered the initial lockdown as a wholesale business and, through necessity, is emerging as something very different. First lockdown Volcano Coffee Works is an independent [...]