How Argos will help Sainsbury’s rival Amazon after Home Retail Group deal February 2, 2016 Sainsbury’s purchase of Home Retail Group has been everywhere, but only half the story is being told. Arguably the most important half of the picture is what’s being missed. The real impact will not be solely in-store, but the online, logistical and fulfilment capabilities it unlocks for Sainsbury’s. It could well be what drags the [...]
Ocado share price jumps as it makes its second-ever profit – and says it is “confident” of signing a big deal February 2, 2016 Ocado has reported its second-ever pre-tax profit, which jumped 65 per cent in the year to the end of November. And the company was dropped a couple of hints which could relate to those rumours of a tie-up with a certain giant ecommerce site… The figures In a statement today, Ocado said gross retail sales rose to £1.1bn in 2015, up 14.7 per [...]
Dixons Carphone deputy chief executive Andrew Harrison to join Ocado board January 28, 2016 Dixons Carphone deputy chief executive Andrew Harrison is joining the board of Ocado, bolstering the business' retail skills further. Harrison will join as an independent non-executive director on 1 March. His appointment comes at an interesting time for the business, which is rumoured to be in talks about a tie-up with Amazon – rather than go [...]
Ocado share price jumps on Amazon tie-up rumours January 19, 2016 Ocado shares jumped more than 18 per cent in early trading following reports of a tie-up with potential rival Amazon. The online grocery delivery company faces new competition from Amazon, which is expected to soon launch its own fully-fledged delivery service for fresh food. Amazon may now partner with the already well-established Ocado to fulfil those plans, according to the [...]
A bad start to the year for Sainsbury’s, Anglo American, Aberdeen Asset Management and Burberry, who top the list of most shorted shares of 2016 January 5, 2016 Sainsbury's yesterday revealed it had made an approach to takeover Home Retail Group, the owner of Argos and Homebase, in a bid to reverse its faltering fortunes. The report came as the extent of the Big Four supermarket’s woes were laid bare by new data revealing that its shares were the most shorted on the [...]
Tesco, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl, Asda and Sainsbury’s: What to expect from the supermarket sector’s Christmas results January 5, 2016 Supermarkets were going for broke this Christmas, after a poor year of trading for the likes of Tesco, Morrisons and Asda, with Sainsbury's the only one of the Big Four in growth in the run-up to the festive period. But with challengers Lidl and Aldi stealing market share from the price conscious, while Marks & Spencer and [...]
Flickr and Slack founder Stewart Butterfield on starting one of the fastest growing startups ever January 4, 2016 "I lived in Cambridge in the late 1990s, and even then they were working on Silicon Fen,” says Stewart Butterfield. We’re talking about replicating Silicon Valley because, as the founder of Flickr and now team collaboration tool Slack, he’s well placed to comment. And it’s not that he’s picking on Cambridge; the point is that [...]
Ocado share price tumbles and Amazon’s Pantry grocery delivery is to blame December 30, 2015 Shares in upmarket online grocery delivery company Ocado took a hammering in morning trading after news Amazon is expanding its fresh produce service, Pantry, pegging the retail giant as a serious contender in the already highly competitive food delivery market. Shares were down as much as 7.9 per cent on Wednesday, touching a 12 month intraday low of 299p per share, making a [...]
As Tesco’s share price drops to an 18-year low, it’s clear the rollercoaster ride will continue for some time yet December 10, 2015 Tesco has turned back time this week, with its share price dropping to an 18-year low. The less said about what was going on in 1997 the better – instead, we turn our focus to the rollercoaster ride that is the UK's largest retailer. Dave Lewis has certainly ushered in some change, but given where Tesco's [...]
FTSE 100 hoping for festive cheer to follow European Central Bank’s Mario Draghi – London Report December 6, 2015 Following widespread market disappointment last week after the European Central Bank came in at below expectations with its interest rates and monetary easing policy, this week the big macro-economic numbers to look out for are coming from China We’ll get the country’s trade balance and then consumer price inflation figures tomorrow. Back here in Britain [...]