Unilever sales disappoint after China slowdown January 20, 2015 CONSUMER goods giant Unilever reported lower-than-expected fourth quarter sales yesterday as it continued to grapple with a slowdown in demand for its products in emerging markets, particularly in China. The owner of Lipton tea and Dove soap said like-for-like sales rose by 2.1 per cent in the fourth quarter, in line with the third quarter, [...]
Real Good Food sparkles after buying Rainbow Dust for £7.5m January 20, 2015 Real Good Food has brightened up its ingredients business after buying a company that makes edible glitters and food paint in a deal worth up to £7.5m. The company, which owns the Whitworths sugar brand, said yesterday it has completed its acquisition of sprinkles-maker Rainbow Dust Colours. It has paid an initial £4m, with an [...]
Burger chain gears up for $568m float January 20, 2015 EMERGING gourmet burger chain Shake Shack said yesterday it expected its initial public offering to price at between $14 and $16 a share, giving the company a market value of up to $568m. Shake Shack, which grew from its origins as a hot dog stand in New York’s Madison Square Park, has adopted a cult [...]
Pure Gym hires ex-Wiggle boss Humphrey Cobbold January 20, 2015 Budget fitness chain Pure Gym is making sure it stays in shape after hiring the former boss of Wiggle, the online cycling retailer, to become its new chief executive. Humphrey Cobbold, who stepped down as chief executive of Wiggle in 2013, has taken over the reins from Pure Gym’s founder Peter Roberts, who is now [...]
Eurasia Drilling to merge with Schlumberger January 20, 2015 OIL AND gas firm Schlumberger is set to acquire a 45.65 per cent minority shareholding in Russian company Eurasia Drilling for around $1.7bn (£1.1bn). The deal will involve Eurasia delisting from the public market, which is slated to take effect from 23 February. The transaction will deliver $22 a share to shareholders, which represents a [...]
LondonMetric buys Eddie Stobart shed January 20, 2015 LONDONMETRIC said yesterday it has bought an east London warehouse leased out to logistics group Eddie Stobart for £56.5m. The property group said it acquired the 28-acre site in Dagenham from Meaalofa Developments Holdings. It is let entirely to Eddie Stobart at a rent of £3m per year for 17 years from August 2014. The [...]
Shopping trip lifts NewRiver January 20, 2015 BRITISH real estate investment trust (REIT) NewRiver Retail said its portfolio grew by 8.8 per cent in the third quarter after making acquisitions at the end of last year. The group grew its assets under management to £800m compared with £735m in September last year after buying several assets, such as the Arndale Centre in [...]
Dragon Oil continues search for acquisition as it targets growth January 20, 2015 EXPLORATION and production company Dragon Oil revealed yesterday that it is targeting a 10 per cent increase in production during 2015. The group is planning to complete between 15 and 20 wells per year in 2015 and 2016, with the aim of producing 100,000 barrels of oil per day in 2016. The company said it [...]
WS Atkins boss to help Aggreko generate renewables experience January 20, 2015 GENERATOR hire company Aggreko yesterday appointed WS Atkins chief executive Professor Dr Uwe Krueger as a non-executive director. Uwe, who takes up his new post on 1 February, has been chief executive of the design and engineering consultancy group since August 2011. Most of his career has been spent leading engineering and consulting organisations in [...]
Denmark’s ISS strikes deal for UK engineer January 20, 2015 ISS, a leading facility services provider, yesterday bought the UK, Ireland and European operations of British technical services company GS Hall. The deal values the business at £53m, including debt and a £6m earn-out to be paid in the first half of this year depending on the business’s financial performance. Denmark-based ISS has funded the [...]
