Freedom Friday: How lockdown is being eased across the UK from today April 23, 2021 People can finally get a hair cut in Northern Ireland from today, while those in Wales are looking forward to more freedom this weekend as coronavirus restrictions are eased. Travel between Scotland, England and Wales will be be permitted from Monday and tourist accommodation can welcome back visitors. Here is an overview of the state [...]
Foxtons to review chief’s pay following shareholder revolt April 22, 2021 Foxtons will review its remuneration policy after nearly 40 per cent of shareholders voted against executive pay packages. Foxtons faced criticism from investors and shareholders groups over its decision to award CEO Nic Budden almost £1m in bonuses for the year. Shareholders’ concern centred on the group paying out bonuses to executives despite a sharp [...]
Co-op to axe team manager roles in shake-up affecting 2,000 jobs April 22, 2021 Convenience store chain Co-op has announced plans to overhaul its worker structure, in a move that is expected to impact around 2,000 staff members. The retailer will reportedly axe the team manager role across most of its sites, although no compulsory redundancies are expected to be made. Instead, Co-op will offer those affected by the [...]
Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley ordered to replace signage on 180-year-old department store in row with council April 22, 2021 Frasers’ boss Mike Ashley has been ordered to replace the letters of a 180-year-old landmark department store in Edinburgh. Ashley, the founder of Sports Direct, has been issued with a formal notice to Sports Direct International, now rebranded as Frasers Group, over work “executed to the listed building… having regard to the effect of the [...]
Corona Impact Series: A Tottenham kitchen on a mission to make Londoners eat more plants April 22, 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: allplants, a plant-based food delivery startup that had no choice but to scale rapidly during the pandemic. The plant-based food brand allplants was created by Jonathan Petrides and [...]
Hedge fund Odey takes short position against Deliveroo after disastrous IPO April 22, 2021 Odey Asset Management has taken a short position against Deliveroo after a disastrous start to the delivery firm’s London IPO. Odey fund managers James Hanbury and Jamie Grimston took the bet on Deliveroo’s first day of trading, according to investor documents seen by the Financial Times. Deliveroo made its debut on 31 March with a [...]
Shopper, drinker and diner numbers recover as UK retailers and hospitality firms reopen April 22, 2021 Restaurant and pub reservations soared and shoppers headed back to the high street in vast numbers as coronavirus restrictions on outdoor hospitality and retailers lifted. The latest data showed that UK seated diner reservations on Saturday reached 60 per cent of the levels seen on the equivalent day in 2019, pre-pandemic. Figures were even higher [...]
Lockdown pushes Domino’s UK sales higher April 22, 2021 Domino’s Pizza reported “exceptional” sales in the first quarter as lockdowns pushed pizza delivery orders higher. Sales in the UK and Ireland jumped 18.7 per cent to £371.3m in the three months to March. Like-for-like system sakes were up 18.5 per cent maintaining the company’s momentum. In March Domino’s announced plans to open 200 new [...]
Booze brand Pernod Ricard set to toast full-year profit growth April 22, 2021 Pernod Ricard today said it forecast strong profit growth for the full year after cashing in on boosted demand for its drinks in the third quarter. The French booze group, which owns brands including Absolut vodka and Beefeater gin, posted sales of €1.9bn (£1.6bn) in the three months to the end of March, up 19 [...]
Covid travel restrictions see revenue at hotel giant Accor tumble April 21, 2021 Revenue at Accor fell in the first quarter of its 2021 financial year, as Covid-19 restrictions left the group still unable to operate at full capacity. First-quarter revenue totalled €361m, down 48 per cent when compared with Q1 in 2020. Revenue per available room fell by 64 per cent against Q1 2019, reflecting the current [...]