Unlocking the secret to startup success February 10, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks to the co-founders of Secret Escapes about their adventures in the online travel industry IF YOU watch television, it’s likely you’ll have been exposed (and possibly raised an eyebrow) to Secret Escapes’ marketing campaign – arguably the most provocative advert since Cindy Crawford donned denim hotpants for Pepsi. Brand ambassador Camilla Arfwedson’s [...]
Unlocking the secret to startup success February 9, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks to the co-founders of Secret Escapes about their adventures in the online travel industry IF YOU watch television, it’s likely you’ll have been exposed (and possibly raised an eyebrow) to Secret Escapes’ marketing campaign – arguably the most provocative advert since Cindy Crawford donned denim hotpants for Pepsi. Brand ambassador Camilla Arfwedson’s [...]
Inside Track: Supermarket set to repair Russian reputation in London February 6, 2014 THERE’S been many a well-known company, from the likes of retailer Harvey Nichols to the property website Zoopla or even the restaurant website Just Eat, tipped to float on the reviving London new issues market, but it looks likely one of the first companies to make it across the line will be Lenta, which is [...]
The frightening reality of the welfare state we’re in February 4, 2014 IF TV’S Benefits Street raised a fuss, James Bartholomew’s The Welfare State We’re In should cause an earthquake. Never mind a few scrounging scallywags, Bartholomew’s book (just republished) gives us the total historical horror of the welfare state in living Technicolor. Bartholomew is a Redbull double-espresso to Iain Duncan Smith’s limp chamomile tea. Forget reforming [...]
Restaurant review: Wright Brothers January 28, 2014 RESTAURANT 8-9 Lamb Street, Spitalfields, E1 6EA Tel: 0207 377 8706 FOOD Four Stars VALUE Three Stars ATMOSPHERE Four Stars Cost for two with nice wine: £180 A FEW years ago I came up with an idea for a new law: the meat licence. To get a meat licence – a legal document allowing you [...]
How to grow a business from a bean January 26, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks student life and staple diets with James Eder, founder of marketing firm The Beans Group IN THE age-old debate over whether entrepreneurship is innate or can be taught, James Eder – founder of The Beans Group – makes a strong case for the former. At 13, he and his brother Michael created [...]
Inside Track: Don’t fret: there’s no doubt the deals are on their way January 23, 2014 ONE banker told me the pipeline for new issue deals is as big as he has seen it over the past decade. While another deal-maker says he’s been getting up at 4.30am every morning. And that’s not to watch re-runs of The Wire or Mad Men. It’s the only way to get his work done. [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 23 January 2014 January 22, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Microsoft to shield users’ data Microsoft will allow foreign customers to have their personal data stored on servers outside the US, breaking ranks with other big technology groups that until now have shown a united front in response to the American surveillance scandal. Just Eat gears up for £900m IPO London’s start-up cluster [...]
Bottom Line: Spread this: I can’t believe it’s not better January 21, 2014 IT DOESN’T look bullish for UK waistlines that Unilever, the world’s biggest ice cream maker, just recorded its twenty-fifth successive quarter of UK growth. Americans have more willpower. Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey wasn’t enough to keep the US market from slowing consumption of the firm’s frozen treats, helping to send its refreshment division down [...]
40pc of rail passengers are upset by this commuter nightmare January 21, 2014 The state of the toilets on Britain’s railways is the biggest bugbear for passengers, according to the latest national rail passenger survey. The biannual poll, which quizzes thousands of passengers, found that four in ten are dissatisfied with the toilet facilities and just 36 per cent were happy with the loos, down three percentage points [...]