Wagamama owner The Restaurant Group taps investors for £175m March 10, 2021 The Restaurant Group, which owns Japanese-inspired chain Wagamama, is preparing to tap investors for £175m. The firm said this morning that capital raise will be used as a buffer in case of a resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic and also allow it to expand its Wagamama brand and pubs business. Restaurant Group said it expects [...]
Zara owner Inditex posts 70 per cent drop in net profit during pandemic March 10, 2021 Zara owner Inditex this morning posted a 70 per cent drop in net profit after a year of trading restrictions and weak demand during the coronavirus pandemic. The European retail giant said profit last year fell to €1.1bn, a steeper drop than anticipated, due to the impact of store closures during global Covid-19 lockdowns. Total [...]
FTSE 100 opens lower as inflation worries weigh March 10, 2021 The FTSE 100 opened lower this morning as market momentum slowed following a tech-fuelled rally on Wall Street last night and inflation worries weighed on investors. London’s blue-chip index dipped 0.21 per cent to 6,715 points shortly after markets opened. The domestically focused FTSE 250 was marginally down. It came on the back of a [...]
Just Eat Takeaway forecasts order growth after bumper year March 10, 2021 Just Eat Takeaway today said it expected further growth in orders in 2021 after the pandemic helped drive a sharp rise in revenue for the year. The food delivery group hailed an “exceptional” 2020 after posting revenue of €2.4bn (£2bn), up 54 per cent from €1.6bn in the previous 12 months. The company said it [...]
West End classic Angus Steakhouse ‘on brink of administration’ March 9, 2021 West End staple Angus Steakhouse is reportedly on the edge of collapse unless it can secure rent concessions from its landlords. The restaurant chain, which was founded in the 1960s, has hired KPMG in a bid to strike a last-minute deal with landlords, the Telegraph reported. The Big Four auditor has written to letters to [...]
The dishes that got top chefs through lockdown March 9, 2021 When future generations look back at lockdown, they will be able to differentiate its different stages by what we were cooking. Sourdough bread gave way to banana bread before TikTok coffee suddenly took off. But what about the professionals? We asked four of the top cooks in the land about the dishes that have sustained [...]
London’s Nightingale Hospital to close next month as coronavirus cases plummet across capital March 9, 2021 The Nightingale Hospital at London’s Excel centre will close next month as hospital admissions and coronavirus cases continue to fall dramatically across the capital. All seven Nightingale Hospitals across England will shutter from April, one year after they were built last spring in a bid to ease pressure on the NHS. The temporary facilities, including [...]
For the continued growth of esports, local and accessible venues are key March 9, 2021 In the summer of 2020, a monumental deal for the wider esports space was announced, and whilst it made some noise in financial, esports and gaming circles, it went by largely without much fanfare. The acquisition of Belong by GAME by esports infrastructure company Vindex, and the associated news that the US-based firm plans to [...]
More UK funds run by men called Dave than women March 8, 2021 There are more funds run by men called Dave than there are female managers in the industry, according to Morningstar analysis. There are 68 UK funds run by men called Dave or David and just 45 women, equivalent to just 7.7 per cent of UK-domiciled funds in Morningstar’s sample. Additionally of the £475m in managed [...]
Hotels, restaurants and pubs ‘optimistic’ about bounce back in trading March 8, 2021 Many hotel, restaurant and pub firms are “optimistic” about the future despite the pressures of the Covid-19 crisis, with most expecting trading to bounce back by the end of the year, a survey showed. Hotel businesses had the most positive outlook, with 83 per cent of the operators surveyed saying they were confident about future [...]