Welsh baker Finsbury ups stake in EU distributor in line with plans for European expansion February 21, 2022 Welsh baker Finsbury Food Group, which supplies cakes to Costa Coffee, has upped its stake in its part-owned EU distribution company, Lightbody-Stretz, as it pushes forwards with plans to expand its business in Europe. Finsbury has purchased an extra 35 per cent stake in Lightbody-Stretz – the holding company which runs Finsbury’s European distribution business [...]
Brits turn to ice cream, paddling pools, BBQs and fans as temperatures set to break record today July 17, 2022 Sales of paddling pools and fans are soaring and ice cream is set to break a record for the amount bought in a single week as Brits prepare for more heat with temperatures continuing to rise. With an “amber” extreme heat warning in place for much of England and Wales today, tomorrow and Tuesday, Tesco [...]
Mark Kleinman: The inquest into Wilko’s demise has only just begun September 14, 2023 Mark Kleinman is City editor at Sky News Inquest into Wilko’s demise has only just begun Few things elicit British consumers’ sentimentality like the imminent disappearance of a once-proud high street name. For Woolworths in 2009 and BHS in 2016, read Wilko in 2023. The sad fate of more than 10,000 employees at the family-owned [...]
Mark Kleinman: Wilko’s demise, the FTSE chair merry-go-round and Bink’s breakup with Barclays September 14, 2023 Mark Kleinman gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly column for City A.M.
Square Mile and Me: Cashplus CEO Rich Wagner on his career journey… and figuring out where the Square Mile was November 16, 2023 Each week we ask a City figure to take a trip down memory lane. Today Rich Wagner, CEO of challenger bank Cashplus, takes us through his career in the Square Mile.
Pret A Manger mulls expanding into coffee vending machines in move to diversify July 29, 2021 Pret A Manger is set to expand into coffee vending machines. The sandwich chain is joining the trend, according to the Financial Times, to widen its product offering through automated dispensers as the sector suffers from the drop in commuters and staff shortages. Earlier this month, the company’s application to trademark the name “Pret Express” [...]
Amazon will pay college tuition fees for US staff September 10, 2021 Tech giant Amazon has offered to pay $1.2bn in tuition fees for 750,000 eligible employees as staff shortages continue to bite. In a statement published today, the company said that workers would be eligible for fully funded college tuition including costs for classes, books and fees. Employees who have worked at the company for as [...]
Nespresso challenges Pret and Starbucks opening cafe near Liverpool Street station March 21, 2024 Nespresso will open its first ever cafe near Liverpool Street station, joining the likes of Pret A Manger, Starbucks and Costa to help caffeinate customers on the go.
Premier Inn owner Whitbread warns ‘acute’ political uncertainty will hurt growth after Costa coffee sale April 30, 2019 Whitbread today revealed profits have plummeted 40 per cent since the £3.9bn sale of its Costa coffee chain to Coca-Cola last year. Read more: Caffeine kick: Whitbread announces £2bn share buyback The figures Profit before tax at the Premier Inn owner slumped 39.1 per cent year on year to just £260m in its 2019 financial [...]
Starbucks: Britain’s second-largest coffee chain plots 100 new UK stores March 26, 2024 Starbucks UK has outlined plans to open 100 new stores as it delivered strong trading in the face of a weak consumer market.