The Meal Deal Inflation Index: Tesco, Greggs, Boots and more January 5, 2023 Times are hard – with a cost of living crisis, inflation, and seemingly constant grey skies. Add strikes to the mix and it’s almost too much to get out of bed. But there is worse than even that – the hardy meal deal, the friend of the cost-conscious Londoners, is no longer quite the value [...]
John Lewis and Pret named and shamed for failing to pay minimum wage August 5, 2021 The government has named and shamed some 191 employers, including John Lewis, Pret A Manger and The Body Shop, for paying workers under the national minimum wage. Investigations by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs found that employers owed a total of £2.1m to over 34,000 workers who were underpaid between 2011 and 2018. Named employers [...]
The Notebook: Victoria Scholar on why it’s not all doom and gloom for the economy March 8, 2023 The Notebook is where interesting people say interesting things. Today, it’s Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, on why it’s not the time to be gloomy about the UK’s prospects, the battle for your coffee pound and a new podcast. You wouldn’t be blamed for thinking that the UK economy is in a [...]
A Hotel School for the homeless: Meet Jeremy Goring’s London passion project July 6, 2023 The fourth-generation chief of the family-run Goring Hotel is a busy man. But much of his time is now devoted to the Hotel School, a project giving vulnerable Londoners the skills they need to work in the capital's finest hotels and restaurants
Coffee Wars: Inside the race to become London’s number one chain June 1, 2024 Coffee has played a vital role in reviving Brits for centuries. Despite feeling like a relatively new phenomenon, the first record of a coffee house in England dates back to 1652 and was said to be opened by a Turkish Man named Jacob in Oxfordshire.
Unchecked climate change to drive up coffee prices January 31, 2022 Climate change could destroy half of the world’s prime coffee growing land, according to Swiss scientists, which will push up prices for caffeine cravers. The study published last week, which looked at how a moderate climate increase would impact the harvest of coffee, cashews and avocados, found that the world’s largest coffee producer – Brazil [...]
Coffee prices soar as poor harvests hurt supply November 22, 2021 Coffee shops which have benefitted from the return of office workers are being hit hard by poor harvests in Brazil.
Dominic Raab resigns from the government in wake of bullying report April 21, 2023 Dominic Raab has quit Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet following the conclusion of an inquiry into bullying allegations. He resigned after the PM received the report from senior lawyer Adam Tolley KC’s investigation on Thursday and had been considering the findings since. There was speculation as to when the Prime Minister would respond formally to the report, [...]
Mark Kleinman dissects the CBI’s rescue plan – plus the boss of Vashi’s vanishing act and Man U’s other battle June 1, 2023 In five days time, Rain Newton-Smith must deliver the performance of her career. At an extraordinary general meeting of the CBI, she will seek to convince thousands of its members that it should survive the maelstrom which has brought it to the brink of collapse. The cards appear stacked against her. Already, the CBI’s principal [...]
Suburban takeover: Pret sets out plans for more than 200 new shops September 22, 2021 Sandwich chain Pret a Manger has announced plans to open more than 200 UK shops in the next two years, as it aims to become more than a “white collar worker’s staple”. The business hopes to double its size within five years, with a £100m net investment by JAB and Pret founder Sinclair Beecham to [...]