London Fashion Week to bring £600m of sales to the West End February 15, 2019 London Fashion Week is expected to bring a £600m windfall to the West End, in what is set to be a crucial boon for the capital’s shopping district at a time on mounting pressure for its retailers. A combination of fashion fans and foreign tourists are set to descend on the West End during February [...]
Play the music: HMV reopens trio of stores as Putman sets sights on further rescues February 13, 2019 A trio of HMV stores earmarked for closure have been reopened this week, with more potential rescues on the horizon amid efforts from new owner Doug Putman to renegotiate rents with high street landlords. One source close to HMV said this afternoon that more stores which are currently shut "are up for grabs", although the current number is unknown. [...]
DEBATE: Should Theresa May push for a compromise with Labour to get her Brexit deal passed? February 13, 2019 Should Theresa May push for a compromise with Labour to get her Brexit deal passed? Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of London First, says YES. Theresa May’s primary goal must be to avoid leaving the EU with no deal. That means that the government must stop behaving as if it has a rock-solid parliamentary majority, and [...]
London’s iconic department store Liberty ‘seeks £300m sale’ February 12, 2019 London retail landmark Liberty department store could be set for new ownership for the first time in nearly 10 years. Its largest shareholder, private equity firm Bluegem Capital Partners, has reportedly hired UBS to look into potential buyers for the business. Read more: West End property giant Shaftesbury posts 'resilient' retail demand The company, which [...]
Busting the millennial myth February 11, 2019 Last month I was invited to present at a conference in Berlin; I spent a couple of days preparing and got up at 4am to fly over. The speaker before me confidently told the audience that millennials lacked their elders’ work ethic so would drag down productivity and GDP growth. As I took to the [...]
DEBATE: As London Blockchain Week kicks off, will people ever feel safe buying their groceries in bitcoin? February 11, 2019 As London Blockchain Week kicks off, will people ever feel safe buying their groceries in bitcoin? Dr James Smith, co-founder and chief executive of Elliptic, a cryptocurrency intelligence agency, says YES. Cryptocurrencies are in still their early stages, used more as an investment and tradeable asset than as a form of money, and a lot [...]
Mike Ashley throws accusations at administrator as he abandons bid for cake shop Patisserie Valerie February 11, 2019 Retail tycoon Mike Ashley has pulled his bid for scandal-hit Patisserie Valerie, lashing out with claims the cafe chain’s administrators withheld vital information. Ashley’s Sports Direct said today it was “reluctantly” withdrawing its bid to lift the struggling firm out of administration, just two days after the offer was tabled. Read more: Sports Direct makes [...]
West End property giant Shaftesbury posts ‘resilient’ retail demand ahead of investor showdown February 8, 2019 London landlord Shaftesbury said this morning that demand for retail space had been resilient over the crucial Christmas trading period, with consumers continuing to visit bars and restaurants in the firm’s West End portfolio during the festive season. The FTSE 250 group, which is bracing itself for a shareholder showdown at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) [...]
Food waste startup Too Good To Go gobbles up €6m from investors February 5, 2019 Danish leftover food startup Too Good To Go has grabbed €6m (£5.3m) from some of its existing investors, as it prepares to expand into four new countries in 2019. The firm, which enables users to collect leftover dishes from restaurants and stores at discounted prices, has partnered with 1,500 retailers in London to date, including [...]
City Moves for 6 February – who’s switching jobs at Browne Jacobson, EY and Freshfields? February 5, 2019 Who’s on the move today? Browne Jacobson Browne Jacobson announced that Caroline Green has been elected the firm’s new senior partner with effect from 1 May 2019 for a three-year term. Caroline, who is one of the firm’s longest serving partners and jointly heads up the firm’s retail sector group, will be its first female [...]