As Christmas adverts battle it out, Google Android beats Disney, Budweiser, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief to become the most shared advert of 2015 November 19, 2015 John Lewis and Sainsbury's might be battling it out over who will take the number one spot for this year's Christmas advert, but the two retailers are barely on the radar when it comes to the most popular advert of the year so far. That honour goes to Google Android's Friends Furever campaign, featuring some surprising animal friendships. [...]
Black Friday 2015 UK: Sharp drop in retail sales in October as shoppers gear up for the mega deals day and Cyber Monday November 19, 2015 UK retail sales dropped steeply in October as the hype surrounding the Rugby World Cup died down and shoppers kept cash aside to snap up some Black Friday bargains on the 27th November. The amount spent at retailers dropped 0.7 per cent on the month while the volume of goods bought was down 0.6 per cent, according to [...]
Poundland’s share price plummets as profits slump against “exceptional period last year” while 99p Stores conversion begins November 19, 2015 Poundland's share price plummeted more than 20 per cent this morning as it revealed a slump in first year profits. The figures Poundland's total sales rose 5.6 per cent on a constant currency basis, but like-for-likes were down 2.8 per cent. However it was the EBITDA and pre-tax profits that really took a hit, with [...]
Royal Mail share price rises as it reports progress in cost-cutting programme – but the second half will depend on the Christmas period November 19, 2015 Shares in Royal Mail jumped four per cent to 472.4p after its first-half results showed it's making headway as it accelerated its cost cutting programme and says the outlook for letters and parcels markets remains unchanged. The figures Royal Mail reported revenue of £4.4bn for the half year ended 27 September, two per cent down from the £4.5bn for [...]
Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon “prepared to listen” to case for air strikes in Syria November 19, 2015 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon has said while she is "not convinced" that a compelling case for air strikes in Syria has been made, she is "prepared to listen" to arguments for targeting the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria. Speaking to BBC Scotland, Sturgeon said some tests need to be passed for the case for air strikes to [...]
It’s time investors got behind our world-beating creative industries November 18, 2015 Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the UK last month was largely overshadowed by concerns regarding his country’s impact on Britain’s steel industry. Even so, almost £40bn worth of trade and investment deals were announced during the visit, yet one significant part of the UK economy was overlooked in the commentary: the creative industries [...]
Father government: Liberals have failed to devise an alternative to the parental role of the state November 18, 2015 Nobel Laureate James M Buchanan was the driving force behind the public choice school of economics, which showed that market failure alone wasn’t a justification for state intervention. You had to consider the consequences of state failure as well. One of his best papers, to my mind, was also perhaps one of his shortest, [...]
Black Friday UK 2015: Amazon, Currys PC World, John Lewis and Asos to be winners – while AO World, Home Retail Group and Game Digital will be losers November 18, 2015 Black Friday is less than 10 days away (27 November for those who haven't marked it in their calendar/had it tattooed on their forehead) and UK retailers are falling over themselves to get the sales bonanza right. Some, like Asda and fashion brand Jigsaw, have walked away from the discount day. But others are planning to [...]
Sainsbury’s Christmas advert 2015: 39 Mog the Cat books sold each minute since launch November 18, 2015 Sainsbury's has sold 39 Mog the Cat books every minute since they were launched in store last Thursday, taking the top spot in the bestseller charts. Mog’s Christmas Calamity, a book created specially by the author Judith Kerr for Sainsbury's Christmas campaign, is topping both the children’s and adults bestseller charts less than a week after its release. [...]
The Bermondsey Yard Cafe review: Is this SE1 restaurant keeping up with its trendy neighbours? November 17, 2015 The times they are a changin’ down on Bermondsey Street. One of the finest Italian kitchens in London and a long-time standard bearer of transpontine dining, is set to close before Christmas. Rising rent prices have reportedly forced the closure. The arrival of Fulham Shore-owned Franco Manca further points to an area of London commanding increasingly [...]