Just 53 London Overground staff voted for this weekend’s strike August 22, 2013 LONDON Overground users are facing a bank holiday weekend of travel chaos due to strike action – despite just 53 staff voting for the walkout. Transport for London has unveiled plans to sack 130 guards on the network as part of a cost cutting measure, prompting Bob Crow’s RMT union to ballot for strike action against compulsory [...]
Consumer confidence rises as house market upswing unfolds August 22, 2013 CONSUMER spending power hit a fresh high in July, after steady gains through the year so far, according to a survey by Lloyds TSB. Optimism about the housing market drove the improvement, with sentiment ramping up around the UK, despite remaining concerns about financial pressure. Last month, 34 per cent of people had positive opinions [...]
Eli Lilly dragged into Chinese bribery scandal August 22, 2013 AMERICAN pharma giant Eli Lilly yesterday became the latest firm to be dragged into the scandal over alleged bribes in China. Illegal payments are claimed to have been widespread at Eli Lilly according to a report in a Chinese newspaper – the 21st Century Business Herald – that cites an anonymous former senior manager at [...]
Bramson leaves F&C with double his investment August 22, 2013 CORPORATE raider Edward Bramson yesterday stepped down from fund manager F&C Asset Management having doubled his money at the firm Bramson, who through his firm Sherborne Investors took control of the faltering company in February 2011, quit his role yesterday having made a 100 per cent return for himself and investors. The FTSE 250 listed [...]
Osmond quits Phoenix after eight years August 22, 2013 HUGH Osmond yesterday quit the board of the closed book life insurer he founded eight years ago, signalling an end to a lengthy – and not always easy – association with the industry. Osmond, the co-founder of Pizza Express, began building up Pearl in 2005, making a series of costly acquisitions. After struggling with a [...]
RSM Tenon sold to Baker Tilly in pre-pack deal August 22, 2013 RSM TENON was pushed into administration yesterday as its main lender and eventual buyer Baker Tilly failed to strike a deal for a solvent takeover. The UK’s only listed accountancy firm, which had already warned investors that its shares were worthless, called in Deloitte to arrange the pre-pack administration. Baker Tilly will close its deal [...]
Bottom Line: Deal shows rising use of administration August 22, 2013 WHILE the writing had been on the wall for RSM Tenon for several months, the form of its eventual sale took many by surprise. Pre-pack administrations are an increasingly common presence on the high street, where retailers from Dreams to HMV have continued to trade following such deals, but a pre-pack for an accounting firm [...]
Supergroup to launch its first stores in Turkey August 22, 2013 SUPERGROUP, the company behind the Superdry fashion label, is to make its first foray into Turkey after signing a deal with a local franchise partner to open stores in the country. The popular clothing brand, whose celebrity fans include Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas and singer Ed Sheeran, announced yesterday that it has signed a [...]
Jack Daniels toasts rising demand with $100m new distillery in the US August 22, 2013 THE MAKERS of Jack Daniel’s whiskey will spend more than $100m to increase production to meet the growing thirst for the world-famous Tennessee whiskey. Jack Daniel’s maker Brown-Forman will build a new distillery, adding stills, barrel warehouses and related infrastructure, to boost production at its Lynchburg, Tennessee factory, the oldest registered distillery in the United [...]
WH Smith is on track to meet forecasts as it keeps lid on costs August 22, 2013 BOOKS and stationery chain WH Smith said yesterday it was on track to meet full-year forecasts as its strategy to improve margins and cost savings continued to pay off. In a pre-close trading update, the retailer said its travel business, which includes outlets in railway stations and airports, had continued its good performance and was [...]