CADBURY’S CARR REFUSES TO COSY UP TO KRAFT PREDATOR ROSENFELD February 4, 2010 IRENE Rosenfeld hasn’t exactly offered herself readily to the cameras during her ultimately successful five-month pursuit of chocolatier Cadbury, though The Capitalist hears there was at least one photograph of herself that the Kraft boss would have liked as a memento to her victory. As the two companies’ representatives filed out of the offices of [...]
Catalyst February 1, 2010 Steve Currie advised on the £44m sale of Minivator from Gresham to Handicare. He is a partner at finance house Catalyst and has over 15 years’ corporate finance experience working at private equity and corporate advisory firms. He recently advised on the management buyout at Farrow & Ball, which was funded by European Capital. He [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 1, 2010 GMT Communications Partners The private equity group has promoted Natalie Tydeman, pictured, to partner and Vikram Krishna to principal. Tydeman joined the group in 2007 as a senior adviser from Fremantle media, where she was a senior vice president. Krishna has been at GMT since 2005. He was formerly a manager at PwC, focusing on [...]
Obama shouldn’t break up the banks January 21, 2010 BARACK Obama might be planning to limit the size of investment banks and the risks they can take on, but those who support a newer version of the legislation that emerged in the Great Depression – such as the now-defunct Glass Steagall Act – should take note: If the recent glut of US bank earnings [...]
Comet festive sales are a worry for owner Kesa January 20, 2010 COMET dragged down sales at parent company Kesa as the electrical store failed to beat off its rivals over Christmas. Like-for-like sales dropped by 3.9 per cent at Comet between 1 November and 8 January, the company revealed yesterday. However, Kesa’s overall sales fall was limited to 0.3 per cent after growth in its international [...]
Comet in festive sales slump January 19, 2010 COMET dragged down sales at parent company Kesa as the electrical store failed beat off its rivals over Christmas. Like-for-like sales dropped by 3.9 per cent at Comet between 1 November and 8 January. Kesa’s overall sales fall was limited to 0.3 per cent after growth in its international businesses. Comet’s performance was overshadowed by [...]
DSG: Currys owner gets a lift from TV and computer sales January 14, 2010 CURRYS and PC World owner DSG International had better-than-expected festive sales figures after strong demand for TVs and laptops. Sales surged by eight per cent in the 12 weeks to 9 January. Analysts had only predicted a rise of between two and three per cent. Chief executive John Browett said: “Looking forward, we expect 2010 [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS January 7, 2010 THE AVENUE REOPENS The mighty D&D London, owners of Coq D’Argent, Pont de la Tour and Skylon, are relaunching St James’s stalwart The Avenue with a new chef, ex-Launceston Place cook Mikko Kataja, on 18 January. The new-look restaurant has gained a private dining room and a new menu that focuses on modern British cooking [...]
Comet fuels Kesa revival December 16, 2009 KESA, the electricals retailer that owns Comet, returned to profit in the first half of its financial year, with stronger sales mirroring recent improved performances by rivals Currys and PC World. Kesa reported a £6m pre-tax profit for the six months to the end of October, a big turnaround from the £103.8m loss in the [...]
Copenhagen isn’t just about climate change December 6, 2009 THIS week, the world and his carbon emissions reduction adviser descend on Copenhagen, where they will try to save the planet. In between meetings, though, they will also be able to enjoy the city. Copenhagen is a small, manageable sort of a place, ideal for a city-break. At this time of year, the key thing [...]