London helps to drive profits at hotelier PPHE August 28, 2014 PPHE Hotel Group, the owner of the Park Plaza at Westminster Bridge (pictured below), reported a surge in profits and revenue in the first half of the year, boosted by a rise in visitor numbers and a room price hike. The group, which owns and manages 38 art’otel and Park Plaza hotels across Europe, the [...]
Calling all trendies and urbanites: Lidl’s £20m ads are aimed at YOU August 27, 2014 German discounter Lidl is gambling £20m on a new national TV advertising campaign to grab more middle-class shoppers from Tesco and Sainsbury’s. The ad, unveiled last night at the Victoria & Albert Museum, shows shoppers trying products at an East End market, only to find out that they were from Lidl. Products include Lidl’s £11.99 [...]
Morrisons fights back as Tesco’s sales get worse August 27, 2014 The challenges facing Tesco incoming boss Dave Lewis were further laid bare yesterday after figures out yesterday showed a worsening sales performance at Britain’s largest grocer. According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, Tesco’s sales declined by four per cent year-on-year in the 12 weeks to 17 August. This means its market share fell to 28.8 [...]
Foxton’s prepares for housing market slowdown in London August 27, 2014 Investors fled Foxton’s shares yesterday after the London property agent warned that it expected a slowdown in the housing market in the second half of the year. The company, which floated in September last year, said measures introduced by the Bank of England to temper mortgage lending and the expectation of a hike in interest [...]
Asos share price surges on reports of US buyout August 27, 2014 Shares in online fashion retailer Asos soared yesterday on unconfirmed reports that a US company is eyeing a stake in the business. Asos shares, which have fallen by almost two-thirds this year after two profit warnings and a fire at its main warehouse, jumped 17 per cent to 2,751p, pushing up other online players, including [...]
Raven earnings rise but warns on sanctions August 26, 2014 RAVEN Russia said yesterday that it planned to boost its payout to shareholders after a positive set of results, despite warning that sanctions on Russia could pose an increasing risk to the company. The £530m London-listed firm supplies warehouse space for blue-chip companies in Russia such as Pepsi and has long been a favourite of [...]
Regus steps up expansion but shares take a hit August 26, 2014 REGUS boss Mark Dixon sought to ease concerns after the company announced yesterday it had brought forward its expansion plans, saying the benefits would far outweigh costs to the business in the short term. The workspace provider, which runs around 2,000 centres across the world, said it expected to open at least 450 new sites [...]
Bank holiday wash-out for UK’s retailers August 25, 2014 The August bank holiday proved a wash-out for retailers after heavy rainfall yesterday kept shoppers away from stores. According to retail analysts Springboard, average footfall across shopping centres, high streets and retail parks was down by as much as 14.1 per cent up until midday yesterday alone after rain and strong winds swept across the [...]
Zoopla’s UK property rich list reveals number of housing millionaires set to hit 500,000 August 25, 2014 Almost 500,000 homeowners in the UK are now part of the so-called property millionaires club after an explosion in the number of houses valued over £1m during the past year. The property rich list, released today by property website Zoopla, said that 484,081 flats and houses are now worth a seven-figure sum – up 49 [...]
Tidworth is top town in Royal Mail list of UK’s most desirable postcodes August 25, 2014 The UK’s most desirable postcodes, based on a range of qualities from education to the affordability of housing, were revealed by the Royal Mail yesterday, with a town in Wiltshire ranking top of the list. The study, which was conducted by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) on behalf of the Royal [...]
