M&S sales up as staff given £80m bonus April 8, 2010 STAFF at Marks & Spencer will be handed an £80m bonus pot after the retailer ended the year with better-than-expected same store sales of 5.1 per cent in the UK. The figures were fuelled by the unseasonally cold weather which saw a massive jump in the sake of woollens. M&S said that total like-for-like sales [...]
M&S staff to get £80m bonus pot after sales rise April 8, 2010 MARKS & SPENCER sales rose by 5.1 percent in the 13 weeks to 27. The hike was driven by sales of formalwear and knitwear and the figures outstripped analysts’ forecasts of a 1.7 per cent rise M&S said full-year pre-tax profit would be around £630m, in its trading statement. The first day of the Christmas [...]
Morrisons man’s £6.1m welcome April 7, 2010 Wm Morrison, the supermarket chain, will give incoming chief executive Dalton Philips a “golden hello” worth £6.1m. Philips, who joined from Canadian retailer Loblaw at the end of last month, has been handed a £2.2m target-linked share incentive plan along with £950,000 to compensate him for awards he would have received in his last job, [...]
Ready, Steady, Go April 6, 2010 GORDON BROWN and David Cameron hit the campaign trail yesterday, after the Prime Minister announced an election on 6 May. Brown kicked off what aides called a “kitchens and canteens” campaign by visiting shop workers at a Rochester branch of Wm Morrison. And Cameron tried to prove his party’s commitment to the NHS by visiting [...]
Leaders in rallying cry ahead of 6 May election April 6, 2010 GORDON Brown yesterday fired the starting pistol on a four-week election campaign ahead of polling day on 6 May. The Prime Minister asked voters to give him a “clear and straightforward mandate” to secure the economic recovery and sent a rallying cry to Labour activists from the steps of 10 Downing Street. “The future is [...]
Lloyds throws weight behind Daniels amid succession talk March 29, 2010 LLOYDS Banking Group last night moved to quash speculation that chief executive Eric Daniels is about to be replaced. Talks of Lloyds hiring City head hunter JCA Group to draw up a short list of potential candidates was dismissed by the banking giant, which threw its weight behind Daniels. A spokesperson said: “Eric Daniels is [...]
M&S chairman Sir Stuart Rose sets departure date as he takes a pay cut March 18, 2010 Marks & Spencer chairman Sir Stuart Rose is to give up his executive duties and take a 25 per cent pay cut in July with a view to stepping down by March 2011, the company announced yesterday. Under fire since taking on the dual roles of chief executive and chairman two years ago, Rose had [...]
THE TIPSTER March 14, 2010 GREGGS, the bakery chain, has had stellar sales during the economic downturn, as their good value products have appealed to price-conscious consumers. Greggs announces its results later this week, and they should show strong profit growth. IG Index offers a June spread of 419.24p-424.24p. ARM Holdings has seen its share price rise steeply since the [...]
Morrisons in bid to expand March 11, 2010 SUPERMARKET chain WM Morrison yesterday pledged to open more smaller stores after new openings last year helped it to record a 30 per cent rise in full-year pre-tax profit. In 2009, pre-tax profits surged to £858m as turnover rose by six per cent to £15.4bn. The company, Britain’s fourth largest supermarket, raised its annual dividend [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS THE HIGH STREET CRISIS OVER? March 11, 2010 TONY SHIRET | CREDIT SUISSE RETAIL “Home Retail Group’s results were pretty poor. They were worse than expected but we had been forewarned about that. Overall sales should improve but recovery in sales are more likely in 2011 and 2012.” SAM HART | CHARLES STANLEY RETAIL “The Morrisons results were bang in line with expectations. [...]