Twitter passes 10 million UK user milestone May 15, 2012 TWITTER has reached 10 million active users in the UK, the social micro-blogging site announced yesterday morning by means of a tweet. This means about seven per cent of tweeters are based in the UK, out of 140m global Twitter users. The website defined “active” as users who log in at least once every 30 [...]
DO YOU USE TWITTER? May 15, 2012 ERENE DELLAPORTA CREATE I do use Twitter. Working for a charity, I find it is a fantastic marketing tool for everyday use and letting people know what your company is about, what you are doing and what you are working towards. ANDREW MEIKLE CBRE I don’t use it but I have been meaning to set [...]
Shares in Avon slide after Coty withdraws bid May 15, 2012 SHARES IN AVON PRODUCTS fell more than 10 per cent yesterday after Coty withdrew its $10.7bn (£6.6bn) takeover bid, saying the world’s largest cosmetics direct seller had taken too long to respond to its sweetened offer. Last week, fragrance company Coty raised its bid to $24.75 per share from an earlier $23.25 per share and [...]
… as Finnish handset maker launches phones for under £30 in attempt to bump up flagging sales May 15, 2012 NOKIA yesterday launched a range of low-end smartphones in a bid to counter its plunging market share. The Finnish company unveiled two models to the European market which will retail at around €35 and €38 (around £28 and £30) respectively when they hit the shelves later this year. And to entice consumers to its latest [...]
Third wave of shopping tech to boost UK retail by £2.4bn May 15, 2012 THE LATEST developments in shopping technology could deliver a £2.4bn sales boost to the UK’s retail sector by 2014, according to eBay. Developments such as augmented reality, which overlays digital information onto physical products, could indirectly generate an additional £9.1bn of sales within the next two years. The report predicts interactive TV will be the [...]
McQueen to open flagship on Savile Row May 15, 2012 BRITISH FASHION house Alexander McQueen has signed a lease to open a new flagship store at 9 Savile Row, Mayfair’s famous tailoring street. The brand, whose creative director Sarah Burton created the Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding dress last year, will open a 4,400 square feet store over two floors. The ground floor will be used [...]
Babcock sees profits boost from austerity May 15, 2012 DEFENCE services group Babcock International expects a profit boost from austerity measures, as governments farm out more work to the private sector to cut costs. “The current economic climate is favourable to the further growth of our business,” chief executive Peter Rogers said yesterday, adding that 2012-13 earnings should be ahead of Babcock’s previous expectations. [...]
Airport scanner maker Smiths grows revenue May 15, 2012 SHARES in Smiths Group jumped in early trading yesterday after the technology conglomerate said sales had increased and left its expectations for the full-year unchanged. The maker of Heathrow’s airport scanners said sales grew in the nine months to 28 April, partly due to a strong performance at its mechanical seal maker John Crane. The [...]
ITALIANS DROWN SORROWS IN CAMPARI May 15, 2012 RECESSION-weary Italians raised a few more glasses of Campari’s trademark red aperitif in the first three months of the year, helping the group post a 2.8 per cent rise in organic sales. The Milan-based group, whose campaigns are fronted by actress Jessica Alba (pictured), reported £279.3m in first-quarter sales.
Redrow chairman ups stake after fundraising May 15, 2012 HOUSEBUILDER Redrow said yesterday that shareholders took up just a quarter of the £80m-worth of new shares it offered them in April, leaving its chairman in control of 40 per cent of the Flintshire-based company. Shareholders took up just over 12m shares – or 26.3 per cent – leaving the remaining 34m to go to [...]
