Marks & Spencer pension scheme transfers £1.4bn to two insurers May 23, 2019 Troubled retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) has transferred £1.4bn in pension scheme liabilities to two insurance companies, bringing the total insurance coverage to two thirds. Phoenix Group has insured £460m of liabilities, covering 5,000 pensioners, while Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) has insured £900m of the £10bn pension scheme. Read more: M&S braced for fresh decline [...]
Tate and Lyle shares drop as it looks to year of flat earnings growth May 23, 2019 Shares sank at Tate and Lyle this morning as the company said it expects earnings per share to remain flat or grow slowly in this financial year. The figures The company said today that a £43m charge on the sale of the division helped push down profits by 16 per cent to £240m in the [...]
Mothercare shares fall as it delays full-year results due to their ‘complexity’ May 23, 2019 Global retailer Mothercare’s shares have fallen this morning after it delayed the publishing of its full-year financial results results due to their “complexity”. Read more: Mothercare suffers another drop in UK like-for-like sales The company, a global retailer for parents and young children which has struggled amid a declining high street, released a statement today [...]
B&M to open 50 UK stores this year despite retail doom and gloom May 23, 2019 Discount retailer B&M said today it plans to open 50 shops this year, despite the wider gloom in the UK retail sector. B&M grew revenue 17 per cent to £3.4bn and profit before tax 8.7 per cent to £249.4m in the 52 weeks to 30 March. The company said it opened 44 new stores in the financial [...]
DEBATE: Does the Jamie’s Italian chain have only itself to blame for its demise? May 23, 2019 Does the Jamie’s Italian chain have only itself to blame for its demise? Patrick Clover, founder and chief executive of BLACKBX, says YES. It’s a sad story for all involved, not least the 1,000 workers made redundant, but to call Jamie’s Italian a victim of external forces is too simplistic. The climate for mid-market restaurants [...]
Drink to that: Young’s pub chain hails profit growth and hikes dividend May 23, 2019 Pub group Young’s hailed robust profit and revenue growth in its latest financial year today, but warned investors of a “tough start” to 2019 after the World Cup fuelled a strong summer in 2018. Read more: City Pub Group cheers investors with sales rise as expansion continues The figures Profit before tax climbed 5.1 per [...]
Arcadia to shut two dozen stores and withdraw from the US in radical rescue plan May 22, 2019 Sir Philip Green’s retail empire Arcadia will shut almost two dozen stores and slash up to 500 jobs as part of a restructuring plan revealed today. The high street stalwart said it has launched seven company voluntary arrangements (CVA) as part of a desperate plan to turn around its ailing fortunes amid torrid trading conditions. [...]
World’s largest cannabis company Canopy Growth snaps up beauty brand This Works for £43m May 22, 2019 Cannabis giant Canopy Growth has bought UK beauty brand This Works for £43m as it looks to roll out CBD-infused skincare and sleep products. Canopy Growth, which is the world’s largest cannabis company by market capitalisation, said it has finalised a sky-high cash transaction to buy the London-headquartered skincare firm. Read more: The green rush? [...]
Sir Philip Green prepares to launch Arcadia restructuring plan May 22, 2019 Sir Philip Green is preparing to launch a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) restructuring of his Arcadia retail empire. The plans, which are expected to be announced by the end of the week, would see landlords handed a shareholding of more than one-third of the business, Sky News reported. Read more: Sir Philip Green loses his [...]
Pret A Manger eats Eat but vows to go veggie in new stores May 22, 2019 Sandwich chain Pret A Manger said today it has agreed to buy rival British chain Eat. Pret plans to convert as many of Eat’s shops as possible to Pret stores serving vegetarian food in response to what it said was a growing consumer demand for more vegan and vegetarian options on the high street. Pret’s chief [...]