Revolut developing ‘buy now pay later’ product September 6, 2021 Fintech firm Revolut is preparing to launch a ‘buy now, pay later’ feature, becoming a rival of ClearPay and Klarna. The company will allow users to spread the cost of in-store and online purchases over a period of time, chief executive Nikolay Storonsky has said. “Simply a button which you switch on and then your [...]
Former Sainsbury’s CEO Mike Coupe made New Look chairman September 6, 2021 Former Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe is to take on the role of non-executive chairman at New Look. Coupe will move to the retailer after working as testing director of NHS Test and Trace since last autumn. The former supermarket boss will succeed Alistair McGeorge at the clothing retailer, effective September 29. “As a leading womenswear [...]
Banks write-off £99m in loans to hotels and restaurants September 6, 2021 There has been a 65 per cent uptick in write-offs of loans to restaurants and hotels during the pandemic, Banks have written off £99m in the year to March 2021, up from £60m the previous year, according to research by international audit firm Mazars. Write-offs in lending to the leisure sector have began to rise [...]
BRC: Food manufacturing may be offshored because of staff shortages September 2, 2021 Some food manufacturing may have to move out of the country due to staffing shortages, a retail boss has said. Businesses were just about keeping their head above water amid shortages of HGV drivers and other supply chain staff such as production workers, Andrew Opie, director of Food and Sustainability at the British Retail Consortium [...]
Holborn: Dominvs Group opens community garden after £250k investment September 2, 2021 Real estate and investment group Dominvs Group has opened a community garden as the meanwhile use for its flagship Holborn development. The group has opened Gaia’s Garden at its 61 Holborn Viaduct property project, following £250,000 investment. The group, which owns the Dixon Hotel in Tower Bridge, said the garden was part of its strategy [...]
Fashion spending to hit £112bn this year as consumers hunt for post-pandemic wardrobes September 2, 2021 Retail shoppers are set to spend an extra £4.2bn on fashion and beauty over the next 12 months, in comparison to 2019. Spending is predicted to rise 3.4 per cent, according to a report jointly commissioned by the British Fashion Council and Clearpay, in partnership with Oxford Economics. Brits shopping for a ‘bounceback wardrobe’ will [...]
City diners worst offenders for restaurant no-shows September 2, 2021 Londoners are the worst offenders for not showing up to a restaurant or pub booking, research has revealed. No shows are costing the beleaguered hospitality sector £17.6bn a year, with pubs and restaurants imploring customers to cancel in advance if they can’t make a reservation. One in seven customers across the country have not turned [...]
Construction material prices hit record high September 2, 2021 The price of building materials has hit a record high as the construction sector has struggled with supply chain disruption. Rising costs of wood and steel are looming over the sector’s recovery as businesses worry about overruns and delays. Prices were up 4.5 per cent in July compared to June and were up 20 per [...]
Grainger proposes placing of up to 67.38m shares September 1, 2021 Residential landlord Grainger has proposed a placing of approximately 67.38m shares, representing approximately 9.99 per cent of the company’s issued share capital. The company said the proposed placing was expected to raise £216m, including additional debt of approximately £144m based on Grainger’s LTV target range. Proceeds will be used to fund two recent acquisitions, Becketwell [...]
Bank holiday weekend busiest spending period since Christmas 2019 September 1, 2021 The recent August bank holiday weekend was the busiest spending period since Christmas 2019, data has revealed. Barclaycard Payments processed more transactions on both Saturday August 28 and Sunday August 29 than on any date since Christmas Eve 2019 as Brits spent the weekend shopping. Transaction volumes were up 14.4 per cent across all sectors [...]
