Prezzo picking up the pace of growth with new restaurants September 4, 2013 PREZZO said yesterday it is enjoying a bigger slice of the restaurant market after opening seven new outlets in the six months to the end of June. The pasta and pizza provider posted a 17 per cent rise in revenues to £79.7m while pre-tax profits rose from £7.5m to £8.2m. Prezzo said it will open [...]
Ashcroft gets into wine firm September 3, 2013 A BUSINESS backed by Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft yesterday revealed a £7m deal to buy English wine maker Gusbourne Estate. Investment vehicle Shellproof will change its name to Gusbourne and join the Alternative Investment Market as a new firm as part of the purchase, raising £2.85m in the process. Shellproof investors, including Ashcroft, will take [...]
Western retail business looks to Russian capital for new markets September 3, 2013 EUROPEAN retailers are increasingly shifting their focus eastwards, as Moscow becomes a top destination for shoppers and consumer spending. Mark Faithfull, the editor of Retail Property Analyst, said: “Moscow is the obvious starting point for international retailers looking to expand”. He added that while luxury products were the first to find the market, familiar brands [...]
Walkie Scorchie sets carpet on fire, cracks tiles and melts paint September 2, 2013 THE GREAT Fire of London began on Pudding Lane on 2 September 1666. And yesterday – exactly 347 years later – there was once again smoke in the vicinity, as the Walkie Talkie’s beam of hot light set the carpet of a nearby barber shop on fire. “We want the developer to fix it somehow,” Ali Akay of [...]
Finding the right ingredients to freshen up the UK food industry September 1, 2013 Annabel Palmer talks to Patrick Drake, who switched litigation for ladles to create grocery delivery service Hello Fresh EATING well and leading a healthy lifestyle are virtues many aspire to. But if your skills in the kitchen are limited, and time even more so, sometimes such aspirations fall by the wayside in favour of a [...]
Whisky wonderland September 1, 2013 Scotland’s Jura may be remote, but it sure knows its drink THE Edinburgh Festival may finish today, but there’s still reason to head north of the border. Richard Paterson, Master Blender for the past 40 years at Glasgow-based whisky producer Whyte & Mackay (makers of Jura whisky), is a third generation whisky man who has [...]
Boost to the UK economy from dating up £200m from 2012 August 30, 2013 The boost to the UK economy from spending on dates is expected to rise by six per cent in 2013 compared with the year before, according to a study commissioned by match.com. This year, the overall spend on dating by UK singles is expected to be £3.6bn – up by £200m on the year before, [...]
How new buyers can live in Zone 2 August 29, 2013 The Greenland Place development near Canada Water could be a boon for first timers, says Kathryn Marsh Greenland Place is the latest contemporary development in SE8. Located next to Greenland Docks and Canada Water, the Barratt London development will consist of 562 units of one, two and three bedrooms. The project will be spread over [...]
Thomson Local bought out of administration August 22, 2013 DIRECTORY services brand Thomson Local was bought out of administration by two serial entrepreneurs yesterday. Thomson Local, which sends out 22m copies of its UK business directory and maintains several websites, appointed Grant Thornton as administrator on Wednesday, following several tough years. The Hampshire-based firm posted a net loss of £732,000 for 2011, down from [...]
Symphony strikes the right note August 20, 2013 Symphony International, the FTSE listed owner of Asian consumer brands, yesterday reported a 11 per cent increase in the value of its investment portfolio. The company, which owns a variety of assets including hospitals, hotels, and restaurants brands, said its net asset value increased despite more volatility in Asian markets. Pre-tax profits at Symphony increased [...]