Covid-19 brings Arcadia into administration, but Topshop’s brand has struggled for years December 2, 2020 Retail group Arcadia, owner of British high street giants Topshop and Dorothy Perkins, hired administrators this week after the coronavirus pandemic “severely impacted” sales. The retail empire, which is owned by controversial businessman Sir Philip Green, failed to secure extra funding to pay its debts despite the Black Friday sales period. While the pandemic created [...]
Landlords approve Caffe Nero rescue deal December 1, 2020 Landlords have approved Caffe Nero’s rescue deal, allowing the coffee shop chain to renegotiate rental agreements for its 800 UK stores. The company said this afternoon that more than 90 per cent of creditors, including landlords, had given the green light to the company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposals. It will allow Caffe Nero to move [...]
Debenhams closure: What next for struggling retail landlords? December 1, 2020 Retail landlords are set to take a multimillion pound hit following the collapse of Debenhams and Arcadia’s fall into administration, and could struggle to fill the space left by closed flagship stores. Many property owners, which have already been impacted during the pandemic due to a spike in retail restructurings and renegotiated rents, will lose [...]
Lastminute.com will pay out £7m in refunds for cancelled holidays December 1, 2020 Holiday firm Lastminute.com has committed to paying out £7m in refunds to customers who had their trips cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) this morning revealed that over 9,000 people were currently awaiting payouts from the booking site. Lastminute.com has now agreed to pay these out as soon as [...]
Covid restrictions: PM gives London’s ‘wet pubs’ who cannot open £1000 each December 1, 2020 All London pubs that cannot open tomorrow when Covid restrictions are eased will be given £1,000. London’s pubs can only open tomorrow if they are able to offer “substantial meals” to punters, meaning that scores of venues will stay closed in the lead up to Christmas. Boris Johnson made the announcement at the start of [...]
Debenhams closure: Timeline of department store chain’s collapse December 1, 2020 Department street chain Debenhams announced this morning that it is preparing to close down after failing to attract a buyer, but the former high street giant’s problems stretch back over several years. Earlier this year the struggling retailer entered administration for the second time in 12 months, even before Covid-19 forced it to close its [...]
Debenhams set to close putting 12,000 jobs at risk December 1, 2020 Beleaguered department store Debenhams is set to close down after administrators were unable to find a buyer, putting around 12,000 jobs at risk in the latest blow to the struggling UK high street. Administrators FRP Advisory announced this morning that they have commenced a wind-down of Debenhams UK, while continuing to seek offers for all [...]
Pets at Home sells five specialist vet practices for £100m December 1, 2020 Pets at Home has agreed to sell five of its specialists referral practices for up to £100m. The FTSE 250 firm today announced it would sell the practices to Solihull-based Linnaeus Group, which operates over 150 veterinary clinics across the UK. Pets at Home said the disposal comprises £80m in cash on completion and a [...]
UK house prices grew at fastest rate since 2015 in November December 1, 2020 UK house prices grew at an annual rate of 6.5 per cent in November, the fastest rate since January 2015, as the sector batted off the second national lockdown. According to Nationwide’s house price index, prices also increased on a month-on-month basis to be up 0.9 per cent compared to last November. As a result, [...]
Topps Tiles posts 78 per cent drop in profit on virus-led closures December 1, 2020 Topps Tiles has posted a 78 per cent slide in full-year profit and did not propose a final dividend, as coronavirus restrictions prompted the company to close stores temporarily in the third quarter. The company’s adjusted profit before tax slumped to £3.6m for the 52 weeks ended 26 September, from £16m a year earlier. The [...]