‘West End productions cannot survive under social distancing’ warn theatres June 15, 2021 The four-week delay to easing lockdown restrictions will have “serious implications” for many theatres, with large-scale commercial productions at most serious risk, the industry has warned. On Monday evening the government postponed plans to fully re-open society on 21 June amid a sharp rise in cases of the more transmissible Delta variant, which was first [...]
Boohoo takes tough stance on suppliers following Leicester factory scandal June 15, 2021 Boohoo has taken a tough stance with its suppliers that includes removing them from the online retailer’s supply chain list if an alert is raised about them. Boohoo has set up a sub-committee of its Supply Chain Compliance Committee that will focus on the financial practices of the businesses and now requires suppliers to have [...]
Metallica sues Lloyd’s of London underwriters over postponed show losses June 15, 2021 Metallica is suing certain syndicates at Lloyd’s of London for allegedly refusing to pay out after the band was forced to postpone six South American shows due to Covid-19. The rock band filed paperwork in Los Angeles Superior Court last week, according to reports, in which they alleged the insurance market had breached its contract [...]
PwC to hire 100,000 new staff in next five years June 15, 2021 PwC plans to go on a hiring spree in the next five years that will see it employ 100,000 more staff as part of a $12bn investment. The new hires will increase the firm’s total headcount by nearly a third to around 384,000. The new staff form part of PwC’s strategy ‘The New Equation’, announced [...]
Housebuilder Bellway makes record land investment as house prices rocket June 15, 2021 Bellway has made a record investment in land since last August, a move that could pay off handsomely in the future with the recent rise in house prices. The housebuilder has contracted to acquire some 15,982 plots since 1 August 2020, up from 10,079 plots in its 2020 financial year, and 10,620 in 2019. Bellway [...]
Sales at H&M soar as restrictions ease but lag behind pre-pandemic levels June 15, 2021 Sales at H&M jumped in the retailer’s second quarter of 2021, however they remained well below the pre-pandemic sales recorded during the same period in 2019. Between 1 March to 31 May 2021, net sales at the clothing retailer grew 62 per cent in the period from a year earlier, or 75 per cent measured [...]
‘BrewDog’s next challenge is not making matters worse’, says crisis PR expert June 10, 2021 BrewDog has suffered something of a PR disaster today after tens of former employees posted an open letter online that alleged unfavourable and damaging things about the company. More than 60 ex-BrewDog employees signed the open letter, which was posted to Twitter and alleged the brewery had created a culture of fear at its [...]
Empty stores on Oxford Street rise by a fifth in six months June 10, 2021 The number of empty stores on Oxford Street has risen by nearly a fifth since the start of 2021, as pandemic-led lockdowns took a toll on the high street. Some 17 per cent of stores on London’s most famous street have closed since January, according to research by Property Week. Among the most famous and [...]
BrewDog accused of ‘vanity projects’ and fostering a culture of fear among staff June 10, 2021 BrewDog has been accused of being a “toxic” employer that has led staff to feel fearful and suffer mental health issues as a consequence of working at the company. In an open letter to BrewDog, 61 former employees, plus a minimum of 45 others who “did not feel safe” to include their names or initials, [...]
Wider adoption of product recycling drives growth at Music Magpie June 10, 2021 Tech resale site Music Magpie has seen a three per cent boost in revenue in the last six months, during a period in which it listed on London’s stock exchange. For the six months ending 31 May the site saw revenue of £72.5m, up slightly on the previous six months’ £70.2. Music Magpie’s adjusted EBITDA [...]