Plus500 shares plummet for second successive day after revelations of accounting error February 15, 2019 Plus500's share price suffered a second day of decline after it admitted a $103m accounting error which may have misled investors. Shares fell to a 13-month low on reports that investors may have been misled by the firm's 2017 annual accounts, which stated it suffered no losses from client trading. Plus500 today admitted that was a "drafting error" and [...]
LK Bennett founder weighs up future options February 15, 2019 Upmarket women’s footwear retailer LK Bennett has reportedly hired advisers to conduct a strategic review of the business, in a move that could potentially lead to the firm being sold. Founder Linda Bennett, who bought back the business in 2017, has drafted in consultancy firm AlixPartners to weigh up the firm’s future options, according to [...]
Pepsico issues full-year profit warning as it ramps up spending February 15, 2019 Pepsico has forecast a drop in full-year profit after spending heavily on marketing and the development of new products as it vies to steal market share from rival Coca-Cola. Read more: Coca-Cola bottler core profits fizz The cola company has increased advertising for its products, which include Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Mountain Dew, and has been pushing [...]
London Fashion Week to bring £600m of sales to the West End February 15, 2019 London Fashion Week is expected to bring a £600m windfall to the West End, in what is set to be a crucial boon for the capital’s shopping district at a time on mounting pressure for its retailers. A combination of fashion fans and foreign tourists are set to descend on the West End during February [...]
Millennium & Copthorne warns of ‘challenging’ 2019 as profits plummet 28 per cent February 15, 2019 Millennium & Copthorne warned today that it anticipates a challenging 2019 as it revealed that profits fell 28 per cent last year. The figures In its full year results, the hotel company reported that profit before tax for 2018 fell 28 per cent to £106m in 2018, down from 2017's total of £147m. Revenue also slipped [...]
Better-than-expected January sales buck retail fears as discounts lure in shoppers February 15, 2019 Retail sales beat expectations in January, as shoppers seized on New-Year deals despite a wider slowdown in spending amid political uncertainty. According to new Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures which buck a recent trend of gloomy retail surveys, month-to-month sales volumes in the sector climbed one per cent during January, trumping consensus estimates of [...]
HMV to reopen Glasgow Braehead store as new owner ramps up negotiations with landlords February 15, 2019 HMV is to repoen its fourth store earmarked for closure, as new owner Doug Putman continues his run of rental renegotiations with high street landlords. The music chain's Glasgow Braehead is set to open up its doors this morning after a week of being closed, City A.M. has learned. Putman has struck a deal with the outlet's landlord, Intu, after [...]
Segro to make £450m placing as profits soar February 15, 2019 Warehouse landlord Segro said today that it is planning to raise £450m as it looks to ramp up development amid a boom in demand for storage space from online retailers. Britain’s largest listed property firm, which also posted a double-digit profit rise in its full-year results this morning, has proposed a placing of shares to fund [...]
Premier Foods abandons Ambrosia sale, blaming business climate February 15, 2019 Premier Foods has abandoned plans to sell off its Ambrosia brand, it told investors today, blaming the current business climate. Talks began with potential buyers in November, and since the new year Premier Foods had narrowed interest down to a “small group” of possible bidders, but nobody has made an acceptable offer. Read more: Premier [...]
Patisserie Holdings sells Baker & Spice for £2.5m February 15, 2019 Patisserie Holdings has sold its Baker & Spice brand for £2.5m, in a disposal that comes hours after the embattled cake chain offloaded its 117 Patisserie Valerie and Philpotts stores for £13m. In a statement this morning the embattled cake chain said that Baker & Spice, a deli and bakery chain which belonged to Patisserie Holdings [...]