By: Felix Armstrong

Retail Reporter Felix Armstrong is City AM's retail reporter, covering retail, hospitality and property news. He has previously written for The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph and The i Paper. Email Felix at Felix.Armstrong@cityam.com

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Heatwave drives shoppers off high streets in blow to retailers

June 26, 2026

Record June temperatures have driven British shoppers off of the high streets in a blow to already struggling retailers. The heatwave pushed retail footfall across the UK as much as 10 per cent lower this week, according to data collected by Sensormatic for City AM. In London, where temperatures reached 36C, high streets took an [...]
Miliband would be ‘disaster’ as Chancellor, says Labour cost of living chief

June 26, 2026

Keir Starmer’s cost of living champion has warned that Ed Miliband would be a “disaster” as Andy Burnham’s Chancellor. Lord Richard Walker, who is also executive chairman of budget supermarket Iceland, told BBC Newsnight that the current energy secretary’s net-zero policies are putting an undue burden on household bills. He said: “Climate change is real, [...]
‘Great shame’: Berkeley challenges blocked Peckham development

June 26, 2026

Berkeley has launched a bid to push through its 850-home development at a “run down” Peckham shopping centre, slamming the council for its “spectacular failure” to meet housing targets. The FTSE 250 housebuilder has applied for a judicial review of the planning inspectorate’s decision to block the plans, which it says wrongly put heritage concerns [...]
Burnham camp goes quiet on hospitality VAT cut

June 25, 2026

Allies of Prime Minister-to-be Andy Burnham have gone quiet on whether he would slash VAT for hospitality despite previously backing calls to do so and committing to a raft of other measures to support pubs, restaurants and bars. The outgoing Mayor of Greater Manchester had previously said he would back calls to cut value-added tax [...]
Ryanair blasts ‘misguided’ watchdog over family seating probe

June 25, 2026

Ryanair has slammed the “misguided” competition regulator over a probe into its family seating rules, claiming the watchdog has turned a “blind eye” to more serious issues. Michael O’Leary, the boss of the budget airline, claimed that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has forced it to “reluctantly” make a rule change which will make [...]
H&M misses sales target as cost-cutting leaves retailer understocked

June 25, 2026

H&M slumped to lower than expected sales and profit as the retailer warned that its cost-cutting drive is leaving some stores unable to keep up with demand. The Swedish-listed firm took 54.8bn kronor (£4.2bn) in sales in the three months to the end of May, flat year on year. Its operating profit jumped by 11 [...]
Halfords shares rev up as garage growth drives return to profit

June 25, 2026

Halfords shares have boomed after it smashed analyst expectations to turn a £44m profit, in a sign that the motoring and cycling retailer’s turnaround is beginning to gain pace. The company notched a £43.6m pre-tax profit in the year to April, returning to the black after last year’s £30m loss, as revenue grew five per [...]
Easyjet rejects fourth bid but holds out for ‘more attractive’ offer

June 25, 2026

Easyjet has slapped down suitor Castlelake for a fourth time but said it was open to a “more attractive proposal” from the US private equity firm. The budget airline revealed on Thursday it had rejected a £6.50 per share bid, which valued it at £4.9bn, saying that Castlelake was “substantially undervaluing the company and its [...]
Franco Manca and Real Greek owner slumps to £14m loss as boss quits

June 24, 2026

The owner of Franco Manca and Real Greek slumped to a £14m loss shortly after it its boss quit in the wake of a swathe of restaurant closures. Private equity firm Fulham Shore was hit by a £14.2m loss before tax in the year to March 2025, Companies House filings have revealed, nearly triple its [...]
City firms send workers home as heatwave melts London

June 24, 2026

City firms have told their workers to stay away from the office this week as London is hit with a record June heatwave. Several multinational companies headquartered in the Square Mile have advised their employees to consider remote work in a bid to dodge the sweltering heat. Banking giant JP Morgan Chase is the biggest [...]

Adidas shares plunge after hike in World Cup marketing spend

Adidas shares plunge after hike in World Cup marketing spend

Hélène Darroze à la carte is the ultimate lunchtime luxury

By: Felix Armstrong

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