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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Sainsbury’s merger talks mark end of supermarket big four

October 7, 2026

It is approaching a decade since Mike Coupe, then Sainsbury’s boss, was caught on a hot mic singing “we’re in the money” as his supermarket announced its impending takeover of rival grocer Asda. He was forced to apologise for the outburst, which was caught on camera while he waited to be interviewed by ITV News. “This [...]
Governments should spend more on welfare to tackle cost of living, says IMF

October 6, 2026

Governments across the world should prioritise targeted welfare support for low income households over broader measures like tax cuts to ease the cost of living, the International Monetary Fund has said. Policymakers should do more to protect vulnerable households from surges in inflation caused by geopolitical events like the Iran war, the IMF says in [...]
Could an exit from Europe bolster Tesco’s UK dominance?

October 6, 2026

Like a student nearing the end of their gap year, Tesco has careened across Europe, Asia, even the United States, and is now preparing to return home and settle down. The supermarket chain, the UK’s largest, is weighing up whether to offload its operations in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, with grocery rival Lidl [...]
Cut stamp duty to reap £4bn windfall, Berkeley urges Healey

October 6, 2026

One of Britain’s biggest housebuilders has urged John Healey to slash stamp duty on newly built homes, in a move which it says would hand the Treasury a £4.2bn windfall. In its Budget submission, London-listed Berkeley Group told the Chancellor that urgent action was needed to prevent the housing market from “sliding over an economic [...]
Sainsbury’s and Morrisons held talks over blockbuster merger

October 5, 2026

Sainsbury’s walked away from talks over a merger with smaller rival Morrisons earlier this year, shelving what would have been the biggest shake-up of the UK’s grocery market in decades. The UK’s second-largest supermarket chain held preliminary talks with its private-equity-owned rival over a merger of the two firms between November 2025 and February this [...]
Office cycle racks face the chop as workers opt for e-bikes

October 5, 2026

City developers have hailed the Mayor of London’s plans to water down the amount of bike rack space new offices need to provide, arguing that the shift to e-bikes makes these requirements redundant. The London Property Alliance (LPA), which represents hundreds of developers in the City and central London, has welcomed proposals to cut down [...]
Lidl doubles down on loyalty pricing despite Aldi attacks

October 5, 2026

Lidl grew its profit and revenue last year after pulling in an additional 43m shopping trips, as the discount grocer doubled down on its loyalty price scheme. The German firm and rival Aldi have swept to dominance of the budget grocer market in recent decades, but Aldi has hit out at its competitors for allegedly [...]
Wetherspoon boss blasts Soho’s ‘barmy’ vertical drinking crackdown

October 4, 2026

JD Wetherspoon boss Sir Tim Martin has blasted Westminster Council’s “barmy” curbs on vertical drinking, which he said are “inhibiting business”. Martin, the chairman of Britain’s best-known pub chain, has waded into a row over the Council’s restrictions on so-called “vertical drinking” in Soho and an effective ban on new pubs and bars in the [...]
Costa Coffee hails ‘strong progress’ after Coca-Cola scraps sale

October 3, 2026

Costa Coffee has hailed a year of “strong progress” after owner Coca-Cola scrapped plans to sell it, with the coffee chain saying its refurbishment plan is paying off. The UK’s second-largest coffee chain grew revenue by five per cent to £1.3bn last year and returned to operating profit. Coca-Cola had been hoping to offload the [...]
Gordon Ramsay restaurants top £100m as Lucky Cat ‘star performer’

October 2, 2026

Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant group took more than £100m in revenue in the UK last year, as the group named its five Bishopsgate sites its “star performer”. The celebrity chef’s 34 UK restaurants posted a three per cent uplift in revenue to £100.7m in 2025, as its operating loss narrowed from £7.3m to £5.8m. Gordon Ramsay’s [...]

‘You can walk in the road!’: Inside Oxford Street’s first day without traffic

Fifa election twist as Prince Ali drops ‘coercion, threats and bribes’ claim

Monkey Shoulder is winning over a new generation of whisky drinkers

By: Felix Armstrong

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