Yo Sushi founder Simon Woodroffe: I want to be the next Richard Branson February 6, 2017 It took a life crisis for Simon Woodroffe to set up restaurant chain Yo Sushi. “I got divorced in the early nineties and was out in the wilderness for a long time. I was down to my last £200,000 tied to my flat and was desperate to do something with my life. That’s when I set [...]
Picture perfect: A photography tour of the Caribbean island of St Lucia February 3, 2017 So if my aperture is f/3.5 and my shutter speed is 1/125th of a second, what should my ISO be if I want to properly expose this image?” “Four…hun…dred?” I ventured timidly. “Nooooo,” Kirk said, as we took a pew in a cathedral in Castries. To the casual passerby, he must have sounded like he [...]
Little Chef roadside restaurant chain sold February 3, 2017 Little Chef's owner has announced the sale of the roadside restaurant business. Kout Food Group said today that it had sold its roadside portfolio to Euro Garages, a roadside retail company operating brands such as Starbucks, Subway and Greggs. Read more: Little Chef is being gobbled up City A.M. understands Euro Garages has bought all of [...]
Simon Shaw interview: Lions tours are pinnacle but this year’s could deny England a Grand Slam February 2, 2017 England's chances of securing a second successive Six Nations Grand Slam will be impaired by the summer’s British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, insists former international powerhouse Simon Shaw. An unblemished championship would also see England, who remain unbeaten during the 13-match reign of head coach Eddie Jones, surpass the All Blacks’ record of 18 [...]
Kricket Soho review: this former pop-up is so good it will make you question your life February 1, 2017 I’m ambivalent about pop-ups. I want to like them, to buy into the democratisation of the food business, to support the little guy who isn’t propped up by hedge-funds or millionaire parents. But my god, they can be terrible places to eat. I’m haunted by memories of burgers that seemed destined to never arrive at [...]
Cheeky IPO? Nando’s is considering a float January 30, 2017 Nando's, the South African restaurant chain famous for its spicy peri-peri chicken, is reportedly considering a cheeky initial public offering (IPO). Sources told Bloomberg Nando's is in the process of speaking to advisers and planning a share sale. Among its options, the Johannesburg-based company is mulling a London listing, the unnamed sources said. In a statement, a spokesperson [...]
Enter The Dragon: Why China is snapping up British assets January 30, 2017 What do Heathrow, Thames Water, black cabs, Harvey Nichols and Rio Tinto have in common? They’re all part-owned by Chinese companies. “Britain holds a number of attractions for Chinese investors,” says Simon Bevan, head of the China Britain services group at Grant Thornton UK. “As a country, our language, business culture, rule of law and [...]
Meet the 33 tech startups set for stardom January 26, 2017 More than 30 companies have been identified as the most promising tech startups in the country and will be mentored by top entrepreneurs to help create the next wave of top British tech stars. Challenger bank Monzo, online shopping site Trouva and digital mortgage adviser Trussle are among the startups who will be mentored by Lastminute.com [...]
St Helena aims for tourism boost despite airport woes January 25, 2017 It became famous in the 1800s as the home of the exiled French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, but in recent times St Helena has attracted more attention for the cost of its new airport. Last year it was revealed that the Department for International Development had spent £285 million on an airport at a site that [...]
No haggis for Trump as 45-year import ban remains in force January 25, 2017 Not even half-Scottish US President Donald Trump will be able to tuck into an authentic haggis this year as the 45-year ban on haggis imports continues. Trump will be amongst the roughly 10 million Americans that claim Scottish heritage deprived of their national dish on the 258th birthday of Robert Burns. The US Department for [...]