Nearly 18,000 people have signed a petition calling for Sadiq Khan to save the Curzon cinema in Mayfair September 21, 2016 A petition to save the Curzon cinema in Mayfair – which is under threat of closure – has been signed by almost 18,000 people. The historic cinema has been on Curzon street since 1934, but it may be shut down after property developers made a noise complaint. Developers 38 Curzon Ltd want the cinema to pay for soundproofing [...]
West End gets Brexit boost from overseas shoppers as sales to tip over £9bn for the first time September 21, 2016 Overseas shoppers are flocking to the West End to spend their cash since the fall in the value of the pound – and the Brexit boost is set to tip sales for the district over £9bn this year. Jace Tyrrell, chief executive of the West End lobby group New West End Company, says London's premiere shopping district [...]
Dixons Carphone has created an Amazon Dash style button prototype September 20, 2016 Dixons Carphone is experimenting with the Internet of Things (IoT) to create an Amazon Dash style button that can be used to provide customer support when their devices go wrong. Like a "panic button on a submarine", if your washing machine starts leaking, simply pressing the button will trigger a call back from Dixon's call [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open September 20, 2016 Theresa May has been buttering up Wall Street following the Brext vote and drug giant GlaxoSmithKline has a new chief executive. Here's what you need to know before the US open at 2:30pm London time. The US futures markets are pointing higher ahead of the open. The S&P is up by 0.38 per cent, the Nasdaq [...]
Evolve or die: The high street is not dead but it must shape up fast to lure shoppers September 20, 2016 Reports on the impending death of the high street may be greatly exaggerated. According to the new Omnico Retail Gap barometer, browsing and paying in-store is still the nation's favourite way to shop, with 43 per cent of consumers choosing this method. This was followed by 17 per cent of people who said they liked [...]
Moody’s says UK banks don’t need EU passporting rights September 19, 2016 Leaving the EU Single Market and losing passporting rights would be far from a disaster for the City of London, leading analysts at Moody's have found. The new research comes amid ongoing wrangling between the UK and Europe, between government ministers and across different industries all competing to put their views about what deal Theresa May should [...]
Kingsfisher is looking for a new London headquarters September 19, 2016 Kingfisher is looking for a new London headquarters, it has emerged, which is set to boost the commercial property market after the difficulties facing the sector following the Brexit vote. According to the Telegraph, the retailer behind B&Q and Screwfix is looking for a HQ of 300,000 square feet, and has appointed Cushman & Wakefield to find the [...]
Most chief financial officers want the corner office September 19, 2016 If you're a chief executive, it may be worth looking over your shoulder – for new research has found the nation's chief financial officers have corner office aspirations. According to findings from Robert Half, 86 per cent of finance chiefs want to be chief executive of their current organisation. Some 44 per cent of finance [...]
House prices rebounded in September after the Brexit vote lull September 19, 2016 UK house prices are rebounding from the lull that immediately followed the Brexit vote, according to data from Rightmove. Asking prices have increased 0.7 per cent month-on-month, Rightmove said. In the weeks after the Brexit vote, Rightmove found that prices fell by 0.9 per cent. But first-time buyers are finding it increasingly difficult to get on [...]
Regulator calls for more competition in the water market to drive up standards for customers September 19, 2016 Water regulator Ofwat has called for more competition between water providers, saying customers should be able to pick their own providers. Customers are "being left behind", Ofwat has said, because without proper competition, water companies are not being encouraged to innovate. There could be savings for customers if a more competitive system was set up, but Ofwat said [...]