Hobbs bags £14m of new investment from backer 3i January 12, 2011 FASHION retailer Hobbs has received a new £14m investment from 3i, its majority shareholder, and appointed former Maximuscle chairman Iain MacRitchie as its new chair. The retailer said that total sales since February 2010 have increased by 12 per cent. The move will also see former Asda executive Tony Campbell step down from Hobbs after [...]
Sainsbury’s sales beat Christmas forecasts January 12, 2011 Strong sales of premium groceries and non-food ranges like clothing helped J Sainsbury to report a rise in Christmas sales which analysts expect will be the best among the top four grocers. Britain’s third-biggest supermarket group, which trails market leader Tesco and Wal-Mart’s Asda in terms of annual sales, said on Wednesday sales at stores [...]
M&S sales rise but year ahead set to be harsh January 11, 2011 MARKS & SPENCER saw sales rise in the key Christmas period but the retailer warned that 2011 would be tough, with austerity measures and the spectre of inflation rises to take their toll. Same-store sales rose 2.8 per cent in the UK in the 13 weeks to 1 January despite the impact of the snow. [...]
Morrisons sees slim Xmas lift January 10, 2011 WM MORRISON Supermarkets posted a modest rise in Christmas sales yesterday, held back by disruption from severe weather and a tough consumer backdrop. Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer behind market leaders Tesco, Asda and J Sainsbury said sales at stores open at least a year rose one per cent, excluding fuel and VAT, in the six weeks [...]
Morrisons in slim Xmas sales rise January 10, 2011 Wm Morrison Supermarkets posted a modest rise in Christmas sales – held back by disruption from severe weather and a tough consumer backdrop. Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer behind market leader Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s said sales at stores open at least a year rose one per cent excluding fuel and VAT sales tax in the six [...]
What the other papers say this morning January 9, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES GOLDMAN TEAM RAISES MONEY FOR NEW FUND The last big proprietary trading team at Goldman Sachs has begun raising money to start a new hedge fund independent of the bank, for launch in the second quarter of this year. The team – led by two senior members of Goldman Sachs’ Principal Strategies desk, [...]
Leading firms to pledge jobs January 9, 2011 TOP British business leaders will today pledge to create thousands of jobs in the UK. The heads of leading British firms will meet today with Prime Minister David Cameron at Downing Street to discuss job creation in the private sector. Representatives from supermarket giants Asda, J Sainsbury, Tesco and Wm Morrison will join Marks and [...]
Tesco and Sainsbury’s boost UK market share January 9, 2011 THREE of the UK’s big four supermarket chains are reporting Christmas figures this week, with analysts expecting Tesco and J Sainsbury to have boosted their market share. Research company Kantar suggests that Sainsbury’s advanced its share of the British grocery market by 0.3 per cent to 16.4 per cent while Tesco saw a lift of [...]
Asda vows to cost 10pc less January 6, 2011 ASDA has guaranteed to sell 15,000 grocery products at least 10 per cent cheaper than all of its big rivals. The UK’s second largest chain behind Tesco is promising voucher refunds if customers are charged more. Asda chief executive Andy Clarke said: “The Asda Price Guarantee cuts through all the phoney claims and headline numbers, [...]
Asda’s Bond steps down January 4, 2011 SUPERMARKET Asda said yesterday its chairman Andy Bond stood down on 1 January after less than a year in his part-time role. Bond, who left the chief executive job in April 2010, will also leave parent company Walmart once its 16.5bn rand (£1.5bn) purchase of a majority stake in South African supermarket Massmart goes through. [...]