Hot sauce: Tesco launches new sandwich store to fight Pret A Manger September 1, 2014 Another day, another sandwich bar opens. So what's new? Well this time, it's Tesco which is launching a brand new sandwich shop format – selling premium subs and hot breakfast to City workers. This morning the supermarket opened its first small format sandwich store, conveniently located a stone's throw away from City AM's [...]
London buses: Now you can pay fares by tapping in with a mobile August 4, 2014 In the march towards a future where you can do everything through your mobile phone, London buses are the latest to get on board. Contactless payment system Cash on Tap is being accepted by TFL on all London bus routes and works in the same way as an Oyster card or contactless card. Handy if [...]
Exclusive: Wealth manager ponders market listing in London July 17, 2014 THE OWNER of sandwich takeaway chain Pret a Manger is evaluating plans to list one of the UK’s biggest wealth managers on the London stock market, the latest in a string of potential new issues from mid-market buyout firms. UK-based private equity house Bridgepoint is evaluating a potential initial public offering (IPO) for Quilter Cheviot, the [...]
Bridgepoint cashes out of British tech company SPTS Technologies July 7, 2014 Private equity firm Bridgepoint has cashed out its stake in UK tech manufacturing firm SPTS Technologies for $370m (£216m). The group, which also owns Pret a Manger, sold the company to Nasdaq-listed Israeli firm Orbotech, making 2.6 times its original investment. SPTS was formed in 2009 through a merger of several companies [...]
Cycle shop Wiggle candidate for IPO after appointing advisers June 25, 2014 Cycle shop Wiggle’s private equity owner Bridgepoint is mulling plans to float the company on the London stock market. The private equity group, which owns Pret a Manger, has been working with Rothschild to explore options for the business, one of which may include a share sale. Nomura and Numis are also said [...]
The great Facebook crash of 2014: The internet reacts June 19, 2014 It may have lasted for around half an hour, but the 'Great Facebook Outage of 2014' certainly got the internet panicking. The social network site was down this morning, with users reporting that they were unable to access the Facebook website and mobile apps worldwide. While the opportunity to go outside and talk to other [...]
Suitors line up for Bonhams as outfit goes under the hammer June 5, 2014 A HANDFUL of private equity suitors have submitted first round bids for 220-year-old British auction house Bonhams, after the firm opted for a sale over a stock market float. Up to six firms are understood to have submitted bids for the company, including offers from the UK arm Mitt Romney-founded Bain Capital, as well as [...]
Pret a manger sales hit £500m for first time May 8, 2014 PRET A Manger’s sales topped £500m for the first time last year after the sandwich chain grew its footprint in Hong Kong, France and the US as well as Britain. The private-equity owned group said revenues rose 15 per cent to £510m in the year to 2 January while earnings were up nine per cent [...]
Contactless payments rising as TfL and retailers drive adoption March 12, 2014 CONTACTLESS payments on the high street jumped nearly 300 per cent last year, according to figures from Visa yesterday. Visa Europe’s director of contactless Mark Austin said that the 94.3m payments had been spurred by Transport for London’s use of contactless on buses last year and the increasing numbers of retailers installing terminals. Adoption from [...]
Business leaders speak out in support of immigration December 9, 2013 Two leading figures in British business have championed the benefits of immigration to the UK economy. Former M&S boss Sir Stuart Rose speaking on the Murnaghan show on Sunday said: I'm a free market economist, we operate in a free market. If these people want to come here, and work the hours they are prepared [...]