Next sales up as shoppers flock back to high street but firm warns of slowdown as inflation hits August 4, 2022 Next has shared elevated quarterly sales, suggesting that warm weather and the closure of high street rivals has driven shoppers into stores. In a trading update on Thursday, second quarter full price sales were boosted five per cent versus last year, some £50m ahead of the clothing firm’s previous guidance. Next attributed this to a [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile? August 3, 2022 City A.M.’s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every morning. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. Nuveen Investment manager Nuveen has bolstered its UK consultant relations team in London with a fresh director. Barry Lee had previously been an associate director for LGT Capital Partners UK, where he held a similar role. Reporting [...]
JD Sports appoints former B&Q exec as CEO August 2, 2022 JD Sports has named former B&Q executive Régis Schultz as new CEO, as the sportswear retailer hopes to put a slew of negative headlines behind it. Schultz is anticipated to join the London-listed retailer in September, with interim boss Kath Smith to resume her former role as a senior independent director on the board. He [...]
JD Sports sells Footasylum to private equity firm after watchdog crackdown August 1, 2022 Trainer seller JD Sports has inked a deal to hand over Footasylum to Aurelius Group for £37.5m, following competition concerns. In recent weeks, JD Sports had been rumoured to be in talks with the German private equity group about selling the high street brand, which it attempted to takeover in 2019. JD said the sale [...]
Areas near 2012 London Olympics continue to see economic boost after a decade July 29, 2022 A decade after the London Olympics, areas nearby the event are continuing to feel positive economic impacts. Stratford’s E15 district has seen its economic vitality index score grow by nearly a quarter, according to analysis firm Evaluate Locate, some 15 per cent higher than the average rate seen across the rest of the country. The [...]
Shopping centre owner Hammerson sees profits surge as footfall recovers pre-Covid levels July 28, 2022 Property developer Hammerson today said its adjusted earnings had more than doubled on last year, as higher rents as a result of the UK and Europe’s economic from Covid bolstered the shopping centre owner’s business. The London headquartered property investor said its adjusted earnings had increased 154 per cent year on year, after its like-for-like [...]
Frasers Group acquires fast fashion website I Saw It First after rescuing Missguided July 28, 2022 Mike Ashley’s retail emporium Frasers has inked a deal to acquire fast fashion firm I Saw It First. In an announcement on the London Stock Exchange on Thursday morning, the Sports Direct owner confirmed The Telegraph’s reports that it was to poach the website. I Saw It First was created by Jalal Kamani in 2017, [...]
Heritage campaigners and M&S roll up sleeves for public inquiry over Oxford St flagship store July 27, 2022 Heritage campaigners have started crowdfunding to battle Marks and Spencer’s plans to demolish its 1929 flagship Oxford St store this autumn. M&S hopes to demolish the Marble Arch building, which it says has “asbestos throughout,” to create a new 10-storey building, with office space and a gym. A two-week public inquiry in October will assess [...]
THG and SoftBank scrap options for $1.6bn investment in e-commerce emporium July 26, 2022 E-commerce giant THG has cancelled its partnership with a division of SoftBank, citing “global macroeconomic conditions.” A call option with the Japanese conglomerate to pump an extra $1.6bn into technology unit THG Ingenuity has been scrapped and will “cease to be capable” of being exercised. An option and collaboration agreement was terminated by mutual agreement [...]
Monzo ‘repeatedly failed customers’ by not sharing data, competition watchdog says July 26, 2022 The competition watchdog has accused Monzo of “repeatedly” failing its customers today after it found the digital lender had failed to share transaction data with people closing down their accounts.