Close Brothers to axe fifth of jobs after motor finance ‘wipeout’ warning Banking Close Brothers has warned it will cull as much as a fifth of its headcount as the bank continued its aggressive cost-cutting strategy following mounting losses linked to the motor finance scandal. The FTSE 250 bank said it would axe a staggering 600 full-time roles by the end of the 2027 financial, which represents around [...]
Services sector cuts jobs and hikes prices after Reeves’ tax raid Economics The UK’s services sector has turned to hiking prices and shedding workers in an effort to balance the books in the face of rising cost pressures from government policy. Businesses activity picked up for the tenth-consecutive month in February, according to the latest Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) from S&P, but came amid a “solid” amount [...]
Private sector axes more jobs amid Reeves’ tax and wage pressures Economics The UK’s private sectors culled jobs for the seventeenth consecutive month in February led by a significant drop in the services sector as businesses were still digesting the impact of Labour’s 2024 Autumn Budget. The latest flash Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) from S&P Global described the rate of job shedding in February as at a [...]
Fashion giant Zara holds a mirror up to retail disruption January 5, 2026 Zara is on a mission to be more digital. From AI generated models, to reduced production timelines, to a new AI-powered virtual try-on feature, the moves point to a wider shift within the sector. The Spanish retail giant has spent the last few weeks modernising its strategy, fully embracing AI adoption to cut costs and [...]
JD Sports-owned Go Outdoors returns to profit but cuts more jobs October 27, 2025 Go Outdoors, the retailer owned by FTSE 100 giant JD Sports, returned to profit as it cut more jobs in the wake of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ tax hikes, it has been revealed. The business said it has reduced its headcount as it “faced significant cost headwinds” including the increase in the National Living Wage, a [...]
Britain needs to ‘encourage enterprising entrepreneurs’ to kick-start economy October 22, 2025 Britain “needs to be a nation of shopkeepers once again” and “encourage enterprising entrepreneurs” to boost its economic prosperity, the chief executive of recruitment giant Reed has said. Speaking on an up-coming episode of City AM‘s Boardroom Uncovered podcast, James Reed said if he was Prime Minister for the day, he’d “make Britain a destination [...]
TalkTalk to cut more jobs in ‘necessary’ move October 14, 2025 TalkTalk has announced it is looking to cut up to 100 jobs in its consumer business in a move it has described as “necessary”. The company, which has bases in Salford and London, said the move forms part of its bid to ‘returning to its challenger roots’ to become more ‘focused, agile, and dynamic’. A [...]
KFC sheds jobs as UK profit jumps to almost £100m October 1, 2025 KFC has shed jobs in the UK and its profit surged to almost £100m during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The fast food giant has posted a pre-tax profit of £97.6m for 2024, up from the £59.1m profit it achieved in 2023. However, new accounts filed with Companies House also show that [...]
Eden Project: Losses more than double amid job cuts September 25, 2025 Losses at the Eden Project in Cornwall more than doubled as a “major restructuring” led to a large number of jobs being cut. New accounts filed with Companies House show that its pre-tax loss went from £1.5m to £3.5m. The latest figure comes after the Eden Project also posted a pre-tax loss of £868,000 in [...]
Amazon Fresh to close all UK stores September 23, 2025 Amazon is set to close all 19 of its Amazon Fresh stores in the UK, just four years after launching its first supermarket outlet in London. It has been revealed that the tech giant plans to convert up to five of these locations into Whole Foods Market stores, a US organic food chain it acquired [...]