Shops being ‘thwacked by colossal’ employment costs December 18, 2024 Business rates rises totalling £7.6m are being faced by shops in Scotland when the new tax year starts, according to new figures. A total of 4,520 shops liable for the intermediate and higher property rates will experience an increase in their rates bills, according to information obtained by Conservative MSP Craig Hoy and published by [...]
Shoe Zone shares crash as Budget deals major blow to profit plans December 18, 2024 Shares in Shoe Zone have plummeted to their lowest value for more than three years after the company warning the changes announced in the Autumn Budget has forced it to close a number of stores. The Leicester-headquartered retailer issued a trading update to the London Stock Exchange in which it revealed the impacted that “significant [...]
Shoe Zone: Firm slams Budget tax hikes as it’s forced to close ‘unviable’ stores December 18, 2024 Shoe Zone has said it has been forced to close “a number” of stores following higher costs announced in the Autumn budget. The affordable footwear company said a combination of lower consumer confidence following the budget, plus “significant additional costs” due to the increases in National Insurance and the National Living Wage, have made the stores [...]
Why Canary Wharf has just topped the list of UK retail destinations December 18, 2024 The phrase ‘London retail’ tends to conjure up images of crowds on Oxford Street, boutiques in Marylebone or Chelsea, maybe a Westfield. Green Street, however, has just rated Canary Wharf as the number one retail destination in not only London, but the UK as a whole. Canary Wharf is certainly having a good year: In [...]
Frasers Group CEO measured up for Hugo Boss board seat December 17, 2024 The chief executive of Frasers Group, Mike Ashley’s retail giant which owns the likes of Sports Direct and House of Fraser, is in line to take a board seat at Hugo Boss. Michael Murray will take part in an election to become part of the German fashion retailer’s supervisory board. Frasers Group currently holds a [...]
B&M hires boss of Iron Bru maker as it battles slumping share price December 17, 2024 B&M has hired the chief executive of Iron Bru maker AG Barr as it battles a slump in its share price. Euan Sutherland will become a non-executive director at the Liverpool-headquartered company from 20 January, 2025, subject to shareholder approval. If appointed, Sutherland will also join the remuneration and nomination committees. Sutherland has been chief [...]
Retail jobs slashed as high costs lead to automation and outsourcing December 17, 2024 The number of jobs offered by the UK’s largest private sector employer – retail – has dropped again, as companies shift to outsourcing and automation in an effort to deal with higher costs. This trend has been ongoing for some time, and is responsible for both job loss and a lack of job creation as [...]
Landsec buys Liverpool One shopping centre for £490m December 17, 2024 Property giant Landsec has bought a controlling stake of 92 per cent in Liverpool’s biggest shopping destination, Liverpool One, as it looks to build its retail portfolio. It bought the stakes of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia), which owned 69 per cent, and Grosvenor, which owned 23 per cent, for £490m. The deal has [...]
Cook: ‘Upmarket ready meal business is like a 27-year game of Monopoly’ December 16, 2024 Upmarket ready meal maker Cook has compared its financial position to a near-three decade long game of Monopoly as it hailed being in “the best shape it has been in for a long while”. The Kent-headquartered business said that it if the firm was a 27-year game of Monopoly, “we would now be in a [...]
Vitabiotics: Turnover nears £200m at vitamins giant run by former Dragons’ Den star Tej Lalvani December 16, 2024 Sales at Vitabiotics, the vitamins giant run by former Dragons’ Den star Tej Lalvani, jumped towards the £200m mark during its latest financial year as its profits also increased. The London-headquartered business has reported sales of £196.4m for 2023, according to accounts filed with Companies House long after the 30 September deadline. The new total [...]