William Hill to close 119 betting shops as profit plunges August 5, 2020 William Hill will permanently close 119 betting shops due a drop in retail footfall, the gambling firm said this morning as it revealed that profit plunged in the first half of the year. The figures William Hill posted an adjusted loss after tax of £11.1m, after reporting an £81.9m impairment charge following an assessment of [...]
Booking.com to axe a quarter of workforce August 4, 2020 The owner of holiday firm Booking.com has today confirmed that it will cut its 17,000 strong workforce by a quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic. A spokeswoman for Booking Holding confirmed reports of the cuts, which had been announced internally in a video from chief executive Glenn Fogel. “Unfortunately, as a result of the crisis, [...]
CMA gives Amazon’s Deliveroo investment the all-clear August 4, 2020 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially cleared Amazon’s 16 per cent stake in food delivery startup Deliveroo, after a lengthy investigation process. The watchdog awarded the deal initial clearance in April on the basis that Deliveroo could go out of business without the Amazon investment, but later changed its methodology to just focus [...]
Dixons Carphone cuts 800 jobs in store management restructure August 4, 2020 Dixons Carphone has announced it will slash 800 roles as part of a store management restructuring plan. The retailer, which owns Carphone Warehouse and Currys PC World, said the job cuts were part of a plan to create “one joined up business”. The announcement brings the number of job losses announced this week to 3,600, [...]
Amazon almost doubles size of UK Prime Air drone delivery arm August 4, 2020 Amazon has ramped up expansion of its ambitious drone delivery project, almost doubling the number of staff in its Cambridge-based Prime Air team. Prime Air now has close to 60 staff working on making Amazon deliveries by drone a reality, its largest since the project began in 2016, data on Linkedin showed. Its most recent [...]
Diageo shares drop as profit almost halves amid coronavirus crisis August 4, 2020 Shares in Guinness owner Diageo fell more than five per cent this morning after the drinks giant revealed that profit almost halved this year. The figures Diageo said this morning that operating profit in the year ended 30 June fell 47 per cent from £4.04bn to £2.13bn. Net sales dropped nine per cent from £12.86bn [...]
Pizza Express plans to close 67 restaurants, putting 1,100 jobs at risk August 4, 2020 Pizza Express is planning to close 67 UK restaurants due to the coronavirus pandemic, putting 1,100 jobs at risk, as the casual dining chain put itself up for sale. The company announced this morning that it will launch a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in the “near future”. The CVA proposals would see the group close [...]
DEBATE: Is the Eat Out To Help Out scheme the solution our struggling restaurant sector needs? August 4, 2020 Is the Eat Out To Help Out scheme the solution our struggling restaurant sector needs? Benedict Spence, a freelance writer and avid gourmand, says YES. It seems fitting that a government led by a man so perplexingly successful in the bedroom would launch a national recovery initiative with a name carrying such potential for smut. [...]
The City View: Glass half full? Emma McClarkin on the future of British pubs August 4, 2020 Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS In this episode Christian is joined by the chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, Emma McClarkin, who represents over 20,000 pubs and whose members are responsible for 90 per cent of the beer brewed in the UK. Emma describes how pubs and brewers have responded to [...]
Gym chain DW Sports collapses into administration, putting 1,700 jobs at risk August 3, 2020 Gym chain and sportswear retailer DW Sports has collapsed into administration, putting 1,700 jobs at risk. DW Sports, which will appoint administrators today, has closed 25 of its 75 stores and has ceased trading through its website immediately. The remaining 50 retail sites will continue to trade, but will move into closing down sales from [...]