Crafter’s Companion: Huge debts revealed at firm rescued by Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies January 23, 2025 Crafter’s Companion, the company started by Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies while at university, owed almost £20m when it collapsed into administration earlier this month before being rescued, it has been revealed. The company appointed Interpath to oversee the process on 7 January in a move which has led to its Barlborough store closing and [...]
Weak UK sales pull Primark down despite international growth January 23, 2025 Lower sales in the UK and Ireland pulled Primark’s performance down in the last quarter of 2024 despite double-digit growth in countries like Spain, Portugal and the US. Primark’s parent company ABF Foods told markets this morning that sales in the UK and Ireland, which account for approximately 45 per cent of its market, declined [...]
‘We need to get back to our very best’: Boohoo boss vows to make 2025 a ‘year to remember’ January 22, 2025 The chief executive of fast-fashion giant Boohoo has said the group “needs to get back to our very best” as he vowed to make 2025 “a year to remember”. Daniel Finley was speaking a day after shareholders voted to keep co-founder Mahmud Kamani on its board in another blow to Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group. But [...]
Victorian Plumbing billionaire in line for huge pay day after bonus boost January 22, 2025 The billionaire founder and chief executive of Victorian Plumbing is in line for a huge pay day after his company decided to up his salary and potential bonus. The London AIM-listed company’s remuneration committee has decided to increase Mark Radcliffe’s base salary from £250,000 to £400,000 from 1 April, 2025. The committee has also increased [...]
Waterstones: Return to the office helps profit almost quadruple January 21, 2025 The return of employees to offices in major UK city centres helped profit almost quadruple at Waterstones during its latest financial year. The bookseller cited the trend of the return to work as a key factor in its pre-tax profit surging from £11.2m to £42.9m in the 12 months to 27 April, 2024. In newly-filed [...]
Boohoo shareholders shun Frasers and vote to keep co-founder Kamani on board January 21, 2025 Boohoo shareholders have voted two to one against a resolution proposed by Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group to remove co-founder and vice chair Mahmud Kamani as a director of the fast-fashion giant. Four fifths of shareholders took part, and two thirds of participating shareholders voted to retain Kamani on the board of the Manchester-headquartered company. In a statement, [...]
Knoops on track to almost double sales after festive cheer January 21, 2025 Drinking chocolate chain Knoops expects to almost double its revenue by the end of its current financial year as it reported record Christmas trading results. The London-headquartered company has also confirmed the appointment of Lush co-founder Andrew Gerrie, who is also a former chairman of Hotel Chocolat, to its board as a non-executive director. Gerrie [...]
Mr Kipling mince pies deliver biggest-ever quarter for Premier Foods January 21, 2025 Mr Kipling remains the star seller for owner Premier Foods in both the UK and Australia, with mince pies and Brownie Bites more than doubling sales over Christmas. Premier Foods subsequently said it expected profit to be at the upper end of expectations – £180.1m to £186.4m – this year. Its share price rose by [...]
‘Reason for cautious optimism’: UK consumer confidence rebound on cards January 20, 2025 Consumer confidence is set for a pick-up this year as the economy starts to improve and the UK adjusts to higher costs, according to a new survey. While the end of last year was gloomy for both businesses and consumers, analysts at Deloitte have said there is “reason for cautious optimism” going into the summer. [...]
Former Asda and M&S boss Lord Rose: WFH is ‘not doing proper work’ January 20, 2025 The increase in home work has created a generation who are “not doing proper work,” according to the former boss of Asda and Marks & Spencer. Speaking to BBC Panorama, Lord Rose said more working from home was a part of the UK economy’s “general decline” and that productivity was suffering as a result. “We [...]