Eat and London Luton Airport investor agrees sale of 46.7 per cent stake in Italian healthcare operator for £230m March 16, 2016 Private investment company Ardian has sold its near-half stake in an Italian healthcare and residential care home operator for €292m (£230m). Ardian’s 46.7 per cent stake in KOS has been sold to CIR-Compagnie Industriali Riunite S.p.A. and F2i. Ardian, whose other investments include restaurant chain Eat and London Luton Airport, acquired the stake in 2010. Read more: Ardian closes [...]
From the best US barbecue restaurants to the Senior Bankers’ Regime: What got you reading this week March 11, 2016 1. US barbecue restaurants City A.M. readers are clearly experiencing wanderlust: our US roadtrip sampling 32 of the US' most mouth-watering barbecue restaurants stormed to the top of our rankings this week. Find out where was finger-lickin' good here. 2. Another supermarket sweep Asda and Morrisons' share of of the market fell further this week – while sales at [...]
City of London poised to step in over 22 Bishopsgate skyscraper “rights to light” battle March 9, 2016 The developers behind City skyscraper 22 Bishopsgate have called on the City of London for help fighting a fierce "rights to light" battle with neighbouring landlords that threatens to derail the scheme. AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets and Lipton Rogers have been locked in a row with its neighbours and campaign groups, who argue that the 62-storey tower overshadows their [...]
Ima-gin that: British gin sales broke all sales records in 2015 while 49 new distilleries opened March 9, 2016 Sales of mother's ruin broke all records last year as 49 new gin distilleries opened across the UK, while shop and restaurant sales topped over £900m. Shop sales of the juniper-based spirit reached over £400m in 2015, up 10 per cent on the previous year, while restaurant sales hit £500m, up 20 per cent year on year, [...]
Hotel Chocolat is seeking valuation of £150m when it lists on Aim March 9, 2016 Hotel Chocolat's co-founder has shrugged off concerns about the volatile state of the markets as the premium chocolatier gears up to go public. City A.M. understands the business is hoping to secure a valuation of around £150m through the IPO, which will see joint founders and co-owners Angus Thirlwell and Peter Harris release a third of [...]
The eight best pies in London: As British Pie Week gets into full swing, we celebrate some of the capital’s very best examples of baked pastry March 8, 2016 1. Polo Bar Fish Pie, £9.50 Pie Week has even united London’s rival financial districts. The chef at Canary Wharf’s Parlour has created this boozy fish pie for Polo Bar opposite Liverpool Street station. Packed with white fish, salmon, haddock and prosecco, it’s so tasty even the fish are diving in. 167 Bishopsgate, EC2M 2. [...]
Damien Hirst restaurant Pharmacy 2 review: Why this Pharmacy is a cure for your foodie ills March 8, 2016 I feel like I should start this review with a personal anecdote about Damien Hirst. Everybody seems to have one, like the time he pulled his foreskin through a hole in his trousers, pretended it was a blob of chewing gum and got people to try to brush it off. My anecdote would recall a [...]
Pizza Express serves up strong half-year sales as it ramps up expansion March 8, 2016 Pizza Express sales have jumped by 15.9 per cent over the last six months, boosted by new menu launches and its expansion both in the UK and abroad. The chain, which was sold to Chinese private equity firm Hony Capital in 2014 for £900m, said turnover grew to £267.2m in the 28 weeks to 10 January compared with [...]
Canadian pension fund CPPIB joins forces with Hermes on £1bn Birmingham Paradise city centre redevelopment March 7, 2016 The Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), one of the country's largest pension funds, has made its second major foray in Birmingham this year after buying a stake in the vast £1bn Paradise regeneration scheme in the city centre. CPPIB said it will take a 50 per cent stake in the £150m first phase of the scheme alongside Hermes Investment [...]
Facing the muzak: Imagesound’s Derek Mapp talks jazz, Aim and Black Sabbath March 7, 2016 Lift music, or muzak, has got a bad name. But since the 60s, studies have found that in-store background music directly affects customer shopping behaviour and the amount they spend. With the high street relying more and more on a better shopping experience, ambience is everything. In 1998, angel investor Derek Mapp helped to found Muzak [...]