Home buyers seek stamp duty holiday extension over missed deadline fears January 13, 2021 The majority of house hunters believe the government should extend the stamp duty holiday, with many concerned they will be unable to complete their deals before the March deadline. According to the latest research, 67 per cent of buyers would like to see the property tax break extended, with 48 per cent worried the sale [...]
Persimmon reports ‘robust trading’ and hails UK’s resilient housing market January 13, 2021 Persimmon, the UK’s biggest housebuilder, said the country’s property market had remained “resilient” despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The FTSE 100 firm reported that trading was “robust” in 2020, although revenue and new home competitions dipped due to the closure of the housing market in the first UK-wide lockdown. New home competitions reached [...]
Hostelworld in talks with lenders over €30m facility after lockdown restrictions hit bookings January 13, 2021 Hostelworld is in talks with lenders over a new €30m (£26.7m) debt facility after taking “minimal” bookings in the final few months of last year. The budget accommodation platform said global travel demand remained muted in the fourth quarter of 2020, and trading continued to deteriorate from August until the end of the year due [...]
Asda to offer in-store Covid-19 vaccinations January 13, 2021 Asda will become the first UK supermarket to offer in-store Covid-19 vaccinations after striking a deal with public health officials. The vaccination centre at the grocer’s Birmingham store will operate 8am to 8pm, seven days a week, and will have the capacity to administer 250 jabs per day. The site is the first Asda pharmacy [...]
UK logistics sector take-up soars to record level as retailers scramble to boost delivery capacity January 12, 2021 Take up of UK logistics space soared to record-breaking levels last year as retailers sought to keep up with the surge in demand for online shopping during the coronavirus pandemic. According to the latest analysis, the total take up of logistics space jumped 69 per cent year-on-year to 42.87m sq ft. The increase was driven [...]
John Lewis suspends click and collect service to discourage non-essential travel January 12, 2021 John Lewis has suspended its click and collect service in a bid to prevent unnecessary travel during the coronavirus lockdown. The department store chain said this afternoon that the service will not accept any new orders from the end of the day. It said it is “conscious of the increased need to remove reasons for [...]
UK supermarkets bring in security to enforce mask wearing as Covid cases rise January 12, 2021 Supermarkets are ramping up Covid safety measures, with many of the major UK grocers planning to make masks mandatory and to only allow one person per household in store. Tesco, Waitrose and Asda have joined Sainsbury’s and Morrisons in announcing that customers without masks will be turned away, unless they are exempt for medical reasons. [...]
Retail tycoon Philip Day secures deal to save Edinburgh Woollen Mill’s future January 12, 2021 Billionaire businessman Philip Day has reportedly secured a deal with overseas investors to rescue retailers Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Ponden Home and Bonmarche, in a move that could save around 2,500 jobs. Day is expected to use his secured creditor status to acquire the brands’ assets from administrators to then sell them on to Middle Eastern [...]
Landlords suffer slump in retail and hospitality rent collection in December January 12, 2021 Commercial landlords struggled to collect rent owed by retail and hospitality tenants in December, as the sectors continued to be hit by the impact of lockdown restrictions on trading. Landsec – the UK’s largest commercial property development and investment firm – collected just 65 per cent of the £112m due in December, compared to a [...]
Moonpig confirms £1bn London listing after pandemic sales boom January 12, 2021 Online greeting card platform Moonpig has confirmed its intention to float on the London Stock Exchange, targeting a valuation of more than £1bn. The private equity-owned company, which trades as Moonpig in the UK and as Greetz in the Netherlands, has enjoyed a boom in sales during the pandemic, in contrast to its high street [...]
