HMRC releases excuses for not paying minimum wage: ‘I only pay them when they are actually serving someone’ August 17, 2021 The taxman has revealed the most absurd excuses it has received from businesses explaining why they are not paying staff the national minimum wage. Some of the excuses included one business owner justifying not paying their staff the national minimum wage due to their workers often being “on standby when there are no customers in [...]
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 [...]
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” [...]
Barings coughs up £130m for Capital House in the City July 27, 2021 Real estate investment manager Barings announced they have acquired a Grade A office building in the City of London for £130.5m from a German retail real estate fund. The global company gained Capital House, a 126,000 square foot office, retail, and ancillary space with 55per cent of the building currently being let to the likes [...]
Bow Lane: Party time in EC4 as City celebrates return of office workers June 25, 2021 To celebrate the return of office workers to the Square Mile, the Bow Bells Association organised a street party yesterday in one of the oldest streets in the City, Bow Lane. Opened by the Lord Mayor Alderman William Russell, together with Bow Bells Association chairman James Goolnik, the Bow Bells sounded to start the party, [...]
Tesco is trying to give quick delivery apps a run for their money May 26, 2021 Tesco is set to launch a new rapid delivery service which will allow the supermarket giant to shuttle orders to customers doorsteps in less than an hour. The supermarket chain will first trial the Whoosh delivery service at its Wolverhampton Willenhall Express store – assessing its potential for a wider rollout. It said that the [...]
Beyond Pret sandwich sales, how do we measure the recovery of London? May 23, 2021 After more than a year of lockdown restrictions, words like “recovery” are thick in the air. Indeed, the Bank of England is forecasting annual growth of 7.25 per cent, the fastest rate since 1941; positive news, but it is not the most digestible statistic for much of Britain’s population. The most important benchmarks are ones [...]
Pret A Manger trades city centres for Pret-rol stations May 21, 2021 Pret A Manger is set to open new shops in petrol stations owned by the Motor Fuel Group (MFG), the café said today, in a well-needed boost for roadside stops. Wither fewer people travelling and going to work, petrol stations have suffered a sales slump of 13.3 per cent compared with the same month two [...]
Pret a Manger plots Tesco store launch in bid to shake off City image May 11, 2021 Pret a Manger is planning to open stores in Tesco supermarkets as it looks to shrug off its reputation as a hotspot for office workers. The trial partnership marks efforts by the coffee chain to broaden its appeal, with boss Pano Christou saying he wanted to “bring Pret to the people”. Its first concession will [...]
Heathrow calls for green list expansion as passenger numbers sink by 92 per cent May 11, 2021 Heathrow Airport has called for an expansion to the travel green list in the next government review in three weeks’ time, including the United States, to boost trade and reunite friends and family. The number of passengers passing through Heathrow Airport was down by 92.1 per cent in April, compared to pre-pandemic figures. After the [...]