Debenhams appoints new chairman January 28, 2010 DEBENHAMS has appointed Nigel Northridge as its new chairman to replace John Lovering. The company said Northridge – currently chairman of betting group Paddy power – will step up to the role on 1 April Lovering had chaired the retailer since 2003 and led its flotation on the London Stock Exchange in 2006. Northridge is [...]
Amazon enjoys strong Christmas January 28, 2010 Amazon.com blew past Wall Street profit estimates yesterday in its closely watched holiday quarter and forecast revenue for early 2010 that topped Wall Street expectations. The online retailer – which sells everything from books to barbecues while offering a host of services to businesses and Web developers – has been viewed as a winner of [...]
3i sits pretty on cash pile as M&A returns January 28, 2010 LISTED buyout titan 3i said it was entering 2010 with “increased firepower” for new acquisitions as it reported a drop in disposals and investment activity yesterday. The group raised £270m from realisations in the third quarter, bringing the nine-month total to £777m – below the sum of £942m generated in 2008. Net cash inflow of [...]
Calgary and Nozic look good at Donny January 28, 2010 THE SKYBET Chase, formerly the Great Yorkshire Chase, is always one of the trickiest punting puzzles to solve in the National Hunt calendar and tomorrow’s renewal looks as impossible as ever. David Pipe saddles SEVEN IS MY NUMBER who currently heads the betting at 7/1 with Boylesports after his bloodless victory in the Grade Two [...]
Morrison’s gets its man with hire of ex-Wal Mart executive January 27, 2010 WM MORRISON has appointed Dalton Philips, a former Wal-Mart executive, as its new chief executive, ending months of speculation over who would succeed Marc Bolland. Philips is chief operating officer of Loblaw, Canada’s largest grocer with 1,000 supermarkets nationwide and a turnover of £18bn. He previously ran the Irish department store group Brown Thomas. The [...]
WH Smith is still upbeat in spite of drop in sales January 27, 2010 WH SMITH yesterday reported a four per cent drop in group like-for-like sales as customers bought fewer books. The figures for the 21 weeks to last weekend showed that the retailer’s High Street stores saw a comparative sales fall of five per cent while sales at its travel-based outlets dipped by two per cent. WH [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW ROSY IS THE OUTLOOK FOR GREENE KING? January 27, 2010 MARK BRUMBY | ASTAIRE SECURITIES “Greene King is performing strongly. There is a note of caution regarding the remainder of the year, but the group is confident it will hit targets. The economic environment is uncertain and the employment outlook in Scotland is set to worsen but Greene King, which trades at ten times earnings, [...]
Bank DLR to re-open January 26, 2010 A VITAL transport artery into the heart of the City will re-open at the start of next month after an overhaul to allow longer trains to run, Transport for London (TfL) said yesterday. The Docklands Light Railway station at Bank, which has been closed since Christmas Eve for expansion and modernisation works, will re-open on [...]
Thriller ahead for Michael Jackson fans January 26, 2010 THE Character Group, which had a Christmas hit selling Go Go Pets, is aiming for another top festive toy with the launch of Michael Jackson dolls. The company has won the UK licence to distribute four Jackson dolls made by Playmate Toys. Two of the dolls will be launched in August and two more before [...]
BA cabin crew start vote on strike action January 25, 2010 BRITISH Airways staff began voting yesterday on possible strike action after the flag carrier’s bosses and unions failed to strike a deal on a planned shake-up of working conditions. The Unite trade union opened a strike ballot for the airline’s cabin crew after talks with the airline failed to secure a deal on changes to [...]