JD Sports share price jumps 7 per cent as it posts record profits September 17, 2014 Shares in JD Sports rose seven per cent in mid-morning trading as the retailer posted record first-half results as its pre-tax profits soared, rising 170 per cent to £16.4m. Revenue also jumped to £721.4m, an increase of 27 per cent. The bulk of the growth was in the company's UK and European sectors. Peter Cowgill, [...]
Would you say yes to Oink Energy’s Peppa Pig-ish porcine power? September 15, 2014 It’s fair to say energy companies are still not at the top of the public’s Christmas card lists – and this morning, a new energy company has trotted on to the scene to give us all something to think about. Would we rather get their energy bills from Centrica’s Sammy “two pools” Laidlaw or Peppa [...]
Next profits up after recovery spurs spending September 11, 2014 NEXT yesterday reported strong half-year profits, fuelled by the economic recovery, rising house prices and higher household spending. Total sales were 10.3 per cent stronger than for the same period last year and pre-tax profits rose 19.3 per cent to £324.2m, compared with £271.8m a year earlier. But the fashion and home retailer said it [...]
Argos boosts Home Retail Group September 11, 2014 HOME Retail Group yesterday reported a ninth successive period of growth at Argos, but said the group’s full-year result will depend on the all-important Christmas trading period. Sales at Argos were up 1.4 per cent to £901m for the 13 weeks to 30 August, while like-for-like sales grew by 1.2 per cent. Higher sales of [...]
City can kickstart title charge with victory at the Emirates September 11, 2014 BEN CLEMINSON WITH HIS BEST FOOTBALL BETS FOR THE WEEKEND TO FOOTBALL fans, the international break coming immediately after deadline day is like the tantalising postponement a child endures in between opening their Christmas presents and waiting until after lunch to play with them. For Arsenal fans, seeing new signing Danny Welbeck bag a brace against Switzerland [...]
Could independent Scots be charged more in shops? John Lewis’ boss thinks so September 11, 2014 Could an independent Scotland pay more than the rest of the UK for its groceries, clothing and white goods? John Lewis Partnership chairman Sir Charlie Mayfield certainly seems to think so. The retail boss, who this morning revealed half year gross sales had risen a steady six per cent to £5.01bn, told the BBC's [...]
Dixons Carphone reports “good start” but mobile sales drop September 9, 2014 Dixons Carphone will breeze into the FTSE 100 on 22 September, the newly formed company announced today. The £3.6bn merger of Dixons Retail and Carphone Warehouse was completed on 7 August, and the company says it has made a "good start" in the period since. Dixons Retail recorded a four per cent increase in like-for-like [...]
Fashion chain Hobbs winds up sister label NW3 after £1.9m loss September 7, 2014 Hobbs’ trendy NW3 fashion line is to disappear by the end of the year as part of chairman Phil Wrigley’s turnaround plan for the loss-making group. The former New Look boss, who joined Hobbs in January, is leading a restructuring of the retailer after it suffered a £1.9m loss last year and saw sales slump [...]
New Look sells French arm Mim to newly-created business Main Asia September 5, 2014 New Look has sold its French business Mim for an undisclosed sum, to a Hong Kong-based company about which relatively little information has been made available. Main Asia (HK) was established earlier this year to acquire Mim, and the main shareholders and management are “active in apparel and textile manufacturing and trading, along with [...]
CityFibre rolling out in Aberdeen September 3, 2014 WHOLESALE fibre operator CityFibre will begin building out a new fibre network in Aberdeen by Christmas, with the goal of bringing superfast gigabit fibre to the Scottish city. Aberdeen will bring CityFibre’s network – which it resells as an alternative to BT, to councils, businesses and internet providers (ISPs) – to more than 57 towns [...]