Independent cafe chain loses £250,000 from disposable cup ban April 2, 2019 Bristol-based cafe chain Boston Tea Party (BTP) lost £250,000 in takeaway coffee sales after it banned disposable cups from its stores, the company confirmed today. The cafe made headlines last June when it banned single use coffee cups in its 21 branches in England, thought to be a first for a UK chain. Read more: The rubbish [...]
Hostelworld profits and revenue dip during heatwave and World Cup April 2, 2019 Hostelworld’s profits and revenue dipped last year as the budget accommodation platform struggled to boost bookings due to the summer heatwave and the timing of the World Cup. Bookings through Hostelworld’s supporting brands saw 47 per cent drop, due to the company’s planned “managed decline” of the brands which offset a four per cent rise [...]
Cinema websites crash amid rush for Avengers: Endgame tickets April 2, 2019 Cinema websites have ground to a halt after a rush of customers hoping to buy tickets for the new Avengers film brought servers to their knees. Odeon, Cineworld and Imax all suffered website outages due to the surge in demand, while Vue established a virtual queueing system that cited wait times of more than an [...]
Julian Dunkerton wins narrow shareholder vote to return to board of Superdry April 2, 2019 Superdry’s co-founder has won an audacious bid to reinstall himself onto the troubled retailer’s board this morning, throwing the future of the group’s directors into doubt. Investors have voted by a narrow majority of 50.75 per cent to allow Julian Dunkerton to return to the company following a long and bitter public battle with the firm’s [...]
Stationery chain Office Outlet reveals list of 16 store closures as 161 jobs to go in CVA April 2, 2019 Office Outlet, the stationery retailer formerly belonging to Staples, has revealed the location of 16 store closures following its collapse into administration. The troubled high street retailer, which has drafted in administrators from accountancy firm Deloitte, revealed today that 161 jobs and 16 outlets face the axe. Read more: Stationery chain Office Outlet falls into [...]
Bonmarche shares drop as billionaire Philip Day snaps up retailer in cut-price deal April 2, 2019 Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group owner Philip Day is set to take struggling retailer Bonmarche private in a deal that values the firm at just £5.7m. Bonmarche has been plagued by profit warnings, issuing its third in late March when it told investors to expect up to a £6m loss due to “significantly weaker” March trading. [...]
Discounter Aldi ramps up market share as Easter approaches April 2, 2019 Cut-price supermarket Aldi continued its rise up the grocery food chain in March, achieving a record market share of eight per cent as it made ground on its rivals. The German-owned chain’s sales increased by 10.6 per cent in the 12 months to 24 March compared to a year earlier, pushing its market share up [...]
Dunkerton lawyers warn Superdry about alleged remarks to shareholders in latest feud April 1, 2019 The bitter boardroom battle at Superdry escalated once again this evening amid reports that co-founder Julian Dunkerton has hired lawyers to warn the company against making allegedly defamatory statements about him to shareholders. According to Sky News Dunkerton, whose audacious attempts to return to the retailer's board will be voted on at a crunch investor meeting tomorrow, has [...]
Joules chief executive to resign after five years in charge of fashion retailer April 1, 2019 Joules chief executive Colin Porter has announced plans to retire after five years in charge of the fashion retailer. Shares slid more than three per cent after Porter, who has been with the business since 2010, revealed he would resign before the end of the next financial year. Read more: Joules boss Colin Porter to [...]
Easyjet shares lose altitude on weaker passenger traffic outlook April 1, 2019 Easyjet was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100 today – closing down 9.7 per cent – after investors baulked at the low-cost carrier's 'cautious' outlook for the second half. Budget airline Easyjet said earlier today it is “more cautious” in its outlook for the second half of the year, blaming macroeconomic uncertainty and Brexit for [...]