Retail bosses square up in £6.5bn bidding war for Asda August 21, 2020 Two veteran UK retail bosses are set to go head-to-head in a dramatic £6.5bn private equity bidding war for supermarket chain Asda. Former Debenhams chief executive Rob Templeman is said to be working with Apollo Global Management, while Paul Mason, who served as Asda boss 20 years ago, has teamed up with Lone Star Funds. [...]
Supermarket visits fall on coronavirus face mask rules August 18, 2020 British shoppers paid fewer visits to supermarkets in the wake of new rules making face masks mandatory, new data has revealed. The number of visits to UK supermarkets was 2m lower than expected in the week after the rule was adopted, according to Kantar. Charlotte Scott, Kantar’s consumer insight director, said the decline showed people [...]
Customers question value of clothes bundles in Edinburgh fashion firm’s Lost Stock charity venture August 12, 2020 Frustrated customers have hit out at Lost Stock, a coronavirus charity venture led by an Edinburgh-based fashion company, claiming it misled shoppers over the value and quality of items sold. Mallzee launched its Lost Stock initiative in June following reports that some high street stores had cancelled stock orders with clothing factories in Bangladesh, which [...]
Fuel prices rise for second consecutive month as oil price steadies August 4, 2020 The average price of petrol and diesel rose for the second consecutive month in July, adding nearly £2 to a fill up, according to RAC Fuel Watch data. The second consecutive month of price rises means unleaded is now 7p a litre more expensive than it was at the end of May, while diesel is [...]
Supermarket growth slows as shoppers return to pre-lockdown habits July 21, 2020 Grocery sales in the the UK rose 14.6 per cent year-on-year in the four weeks to 12 July, but lost the momentum seen at the beginning of lockdown as restaurants, pubs and cafes were allowed to reopen. Supermarket sales slipped from 18.9 per cent growth the previous month, as shoppers tentatively returned to their normal [...]
Walmart revives talks on sale of Asda stake July 20, 2020 Walmart has revived talks to sell a stake in Asda after pausing plans to focus on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The US giant, which is the largest retailer in the world, said it had restarted discussions with potential buyers after it was forced to temporarily abandon the move. “Walmart and Asda have restarted [...]
Porsche Cayman GTS 4.0 review: The joy of six July 18, 2020 I was blissfully ignorant at the time, but this would be my final fling. A few days later, the UK entered lockdown, and the freedom to simply go for a drive was abruptly revoked. In the weeks and months that followed, I often thought about that afternoon. Confined to Croydon, sealed off from friends and [...]
McDonald’s breakfast menu returns to all but 28 of its restaurants tomorrow July 7, 2020 McDonald’s will bring back its breakfast menu tomorrow to all but 28 of its open restaurants across the UK and Ireland. Last week the fast food chain announced the gradual roll out of its breakfast menu and walk-in takeaway service to more restaurants. The breakfast menu will continue to be a limited menu for now, [...]
Covid consolidation bears low-hanging fruit for traders June 29, 2020 No understatement is truer than the one about how “nothing will ever be the same again” following the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses in the hundreds of thousands will not reopen. Millions of jobs have been lost. Billions of dollars have been wiped off the valuations of household brands and City darlings. Past worries about Brexit seem [...]
Aldi extends Deliveroo online grocery trial to London store June 12, 2020 Discount supermarket Aldi will extend its trial of delivering groceries to people’s homes via Deliveroo to include a store in Camden, London. Aldi, Britain’s fifth largest supermarket, launched a trial of the delivery model last month over eight outlets in the Midlands. It said the initial trial had gone well, and that it would therefore [...]