Pressure mounts on big four supermarkets as Lidl enjoys record Christmas sales January 13, 2021 Lidl has strengthened the pressure on its competitors by remaining the fastest growing retailer against the UK’s big four supermarkets of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons. The German chain achieved a record Christmas in 2020 with overall sales increasing 17.9 per cent in the same four-week December period versus the previous year. With Christmas favourites [...]
Marshalls to restore dividend after second half sales jump January 13, 2021 Landscaping firm Marshalls this morning confirmed that it would reinstate its dividend after much improved trading in the second half. After sales fell sharply in the first half, the company said that figures from recent months were ahead of 2019. But group revenue fell from £542m to £469m for the full year on the back [...]
Christmas sales hike drives strong revenue growth at Asos January 13, 2021 Sales at fashion retailer Asos surged in the four months ending in December as the online shopping boom continued amid the coronavirus pandemic. The firm said that the hike in sales had led to a better-than-expected growth in revenue over the period leading up to Christmas. As a result of the strong start to the [...]
Government faces calls to scrap ‘inaccurate’ rapid Covid tests January 12, 2021 The government has faced mounting pressure to scale back its use of rapid Covid tests over concerns the results are inaccurate and may cause “serious harm”. Rapid Covid tests, also known as lateral flow tests, are set to play a vital part in ministers’ efforts to ramp up asymptomatic testing across the country as coronavirus [...]
BBC Sounds launches on Sky in latest streaming tie-up January 12, 2021 Sky has agreed a deal with the BBC to embed the Sounds app on its platform, marking the pay-TV giant’s latest effort to become a one-stop shop for streaming services. From today the BBC Sounds app will be available to all Sky Q customers in the UK, offering more than 80,000 hours of audio content. [...]
Save Burns Night with a virtual Boisdale party January 12, 2021 Burns Night is normally a beacon of extravagence in the post Christmas weeks, an island of indulgance amid Dry January and Veganuary and new year fitness resolutions. This year Covid threatens to take even this away – toasting the great Scottish bard alone seems like anathema to the spirit of the occasion, which entails drinking [...]
Exclusive: City fund managers on the winners and losers from the Brexit deal January 12, 2021 The Christmas Eve announcement of a UK-EU trade deal promised an end to four and a half years of uncertainty and speculation. Whilst there are areas of the relationship still to be finalised, it has brought some much-needed clarity to many UK businesses, even though uncertainty for the financial services space and the City remains. [...]
Very.co.uk enjoys record-breaking Christmas period January 12, 2021 Very.co.uk increased sales by 25 per cent year-on-year in the seven weeks leading up to Christmas, recording its best ever figures over the holiday period. Home and electrical goods were the standout categories for the online retailer, up 46 per cent and 45 per cent respectively. Among the top selling items were bedding and soft [...]
Retail sales suffer worst year on record as lockdowns bite January 12, 2021 UK retail sales suffered their worst year on record in 2020 as Covid-19 lockdown measures decimated customer numbers. In-store sales of non-food items — which includes all non-essential retailers — dropped by almost a quarter last year compared to 2019. For 2020 overall, total sales declined 0.3 per cent on the previous year, marking the [...]
British Land ‘bruised but not broken’ despite collecting less than half of rent from UK retailers January 11, 2021 British Land will emerge from the pandemic intact despite collecting less than half the rent it is owed for December, according to a City analyst.