Rise & grind: Employers splurge on keeping teams caffeinated while working remotely April 6, 2021 Employers kept staff fed and caffeinated while working from home during the pandemic, making up for the loss of coffee and sweets available at the office by expensing Starbucks and Deliveroo orders. Keeping teams fed and caffeinated while working remotely made up nearly 36 per cent of all expenses claimed during January to November 2020, [...]
Central London to get ‘half a dozen’ new Greggs stores following rent bonfire March 16, 2021 Half a dozen new Greggs stores will open up in zones one and two in central London, including in the City of London, after falling rents in the capital made London spaces more attractive. Greggs reported its first annual loss today since listing on the stock exchange in 1984, after coronavirus restrictions forced store closures [...]
Hospitality redundancies: How many restaurant and pub jobs have been lost during the pandemic? February 27, 2021 How many restaurant and pub jobs have been lost during the pandemic?
Is central London finished? International investors think otherwise February 9, 2021 It is a strange experience going into central London right now. Areas that are normally bustling with crowds or chaotic with commuters lie still – even Pret A Manger has reduced its menu and opening times. Those who live outside of Zone 1 and for whom memories of maroon coffee cups, the underground and the [...]
Brand Britain is stronger than you think – so let’s give it some welly on the global stage January 22, 2021 Let’s start with a couple of caveats. Firstly, I’m a resolute optimist – something I share in common with many adfolk. Advertising is not a great career choice for pessimists. Hope is more of a till ringer than gloom. Secondly, I’m proud to be British. Not in the jingoistic sense of the word, but in [...]
Pret distances itself from founder Julian Metcalfe’s lockdown comments October 29, 2020 Pret a Manger has distanced itself from its founder Julian Metcalfe and criticised his opposition to a second coronavirus lockdown. Metcalfe, who also founded sushi chain Itsu, said young people would pay the economic price of the lockdown, saying it would only save the lives of a “a few thousand” old or vulnerable people. Pret [...]
London financial services jobs rise after Covid-19 crash October 19, 2020 The number of available jobs in London’s financial services sector jumped in the third quarter as confidence began to return to the capital. Finance job vacancies rose 53 per cent in the three months to the end of September when compared to the previous quarter, according to recruitment agency Morgan McKinley. For London workers changing [...]
London lockdown: 200,000 hospitality workers to lose jobs this weekend, industry body warns October 16, 2020 About 200,000 hospitality workers in central London will lose their jobs this weekend as tier 2 coronavirus lockdown restrictions are imposed, the industry body’s chief executive has warned. UK Hospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said the tier 2 lockdown, which prohibits people from separate households from mixing, is a “maximum squeeze on revenue with no [...]
Pret axes 400 jobs amid further store closures October 16, 2020 Pret A Manger will cut 400 jobs and close a further six stores in London due to the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the UK. The struggling sandwich chain said the sales growth it had seen since April had slowed from September as Covid-19 injection rates began to rise. Pret declined to specify [...]
English businesses affected by local lockdowns to get extra government funding September 9, 2020 English businesses that have been forced to close in local lockdowns will receive grants worth up to £1,500 per per property they operate every three weeks. The emergency funding will provide support for businesses in cities such as Leicester, Bolton and other parts of Greater Manchester that have been hit by local lockdowns. The grants [...]