The new Downing Street team can’t afford to ignore business January 27, 2020 Political wisdom has it that the first hundred days of any new government is its most vital opportunity to set its agenda. Not so with this government. Having just racked up its first 50 days, it risks accusations of being coy by its lack of public visibility and the paucity of new policy proclamations since [...]
Quintain secures £150m to build more Wembley homes January 23, 2020 Property developer Quintain is planning to build almost 400 new homes in Wembley after completing a £150m financing deal with Goldman Sachs. The funding will allow Quintain to construct 398 rental homes across three new buildings in Wembley Park, next to the Boxpark site. The development – due to be completed by May 2022 – [...]
Not as easy as 1,2,3: Seven accounting errors that rocked FTSE firms January 22, 2020 Ted Baker today experienced the dubious honour of joining a list of FTSE firms that have been shaken by accounting errors in the past year. The fashion retailer revealed an accounting error was more than twice as bad as it previously thought, knocking shares down seven per cent. But it is by no means the [...]
Empty pockets: Why shops going cashless is good for business — and consumers January 22, 2020 In the market stalls, pop-up shops, and beer taprooms of our great city, card payment is increasingly common. And it’s not just a London trend — while card-only shops are primarily cropping up in the capital, they have appeared up and down the country too. This is a phenomenon dominated by small businesses, and it’s [...]
The £300m luxury hotel with a secret tunnel to Harrods January 21, 2020 A £300m luxury hotel development with a secret tunnel to Harrods has been given the green light by the local planning committee. The Knightsbridge hotel will be a one minute walk from the iconic London department store, but also includes a disused underground pedestrian and goods tunnel linking the two sites. Kensington and Chelsea’s planning [...]
Mobile shopping startup Rezolve shuns security fears with planned Huawei tie-up January 20, 2020 Mobile shopping firm Rezolve is set to bag a bumper deal with Huawei to embed its technology into the controversial Chinese tech giant’s phones. The new capability is expected to be available from March, when Rezolve will reveal further tie-ups with retailers, restaurants and media partners. The technology allows consumers to make purchases by using [...]
Spilling the beans: How coffee chain Grind has carved out its own London niche January 20, 2020 Given how busy life in the capital can get, and how hard the people here work, most Londoners must live on coffee. It’s the only plausible explanation for the explosion in coffee shops in recent years. Independent coffee houses are thriving alongside the big brands like Costa and Pret a Manger. According to research by [...]
Former ITV boss Adam Crozier in talks to chair Kantar January 19, 2020 The former chief executive of ITV is in discussions to take over as chairman of market research giant Kantar. Adam Crozier, who led the broadcaster for seven years to 2017, has been approached about the role by Bain, which bought a majority stake in Kantar from WPP for $4bn (£3.2bn) last year. A source close [...]
Rearranging menu promotes healthier drink choices January 16, 2020 Fast food diners can be encouraged to make healthier choices by changing the position of items on the menu, a study has found. Research led by Warwick Business School, in conjunction with McDonald’s, showed customers could be persuaded to choose less sugary soft drinks by changing the order they appeared on the touch-screen kiosks. The [...]
Can AR bring shoppers back to the high street? January 16, 2020 Augmented reality shopping apps can provide consumers with richer experiences and greater value that can lead to increased store footfall and conversion rates for brick-and-mortar retailers, according to new research. The study, Enabling smart retail settings via mobile augmented reality shopping apps, published in Technological Forecasting and Social Change, also found that AR apps can help to reduce [...]