Dragons Den star steps in to save Robert Dyas March 16, 2026 A former Dragons Den star has stepped in to “steady the ship” at a beloved high street hardware store as losses climb. Theo Paphitis, who owns a string of retailers, has installed himself as interim chief executive at Robert Dyas, as the home improvement and electrical appliance seller battles “testing times”. Paphitis bought the retailer [...]
London-based insuretech Loxa bags £2.7m to expand across Europe March 16, 2026 London-based insuretech Loxa has completed a £2.7m seed funding round to expand its embedded insurance platform across the European retail market. The firm secured the investment in three separate tranches from a group of angel investors and family offices. The Lazaroo-Hood Group led the backing with further support from the Angel Investment Network, FundMyPitch, and [...]
‘Fibremaxxing’: How food manufacturers made fibre cool again March 12, 2026 “Fibremaxxing,” the UK’s new healthy eating trend, erupted at the start of 2026, as fibre replaced protein as the go-to fashionable food. Previously mundane, bland foods like prunes and seeded bread surged in popularity, with posts with the hashtags “fibremaxxing” having been viewed more than 150m times on TikTok. Sales of prunes increased 60 per [...]
Here comes Elon: Tesla wins licence to supply electricity in Britain March 12, 2026 Tesla has been granted approval to supply electricity to homes and businesses across the UK, opening the door for the electric vehicle giant to enter the country’s retail energy market. Energy regulator Ofgem confirmed on Thursday that Tesla Energy Ventures Limited, a subsidiary of Musk’s company, has been granted an electricity supply licence by the [...]
Shawbrook shares dive after profit jump on bullish AI plans March 12, 2026 Shawbrook Bank reported a jump in profit for the last year in its first set of first set of financial results since its landmark IPO in October. The London-listed bank reported a pre-tax profit of £340.5m, up from £293.8m the year prior as costs tumbled and the group’s loan book swelled. Still, the firm’s shares [...]
John Lewis reinstates staff bonus but remains ‘cautious’ March 12, 2026 John Lewis has returned its staff bonus after years of its suspension, as the retail titan turned a profit but remains “cautious” in a testing retail environment. The partnership, which also owns Waitrose, made a £134m profit in the year to January 2025, up six per cent from the year before, and notched growing sales [...]
Sheffield Wednesday: New preferred bidder’s quick deal incentive revealed March 11, 2026 Sheffield Wednesday’s new preferred bidder, US group Arise Capital Partners, hopes to complete a cut-price takeover of the fallen English giants before the end of the season. The group, made up of investors David Storch, Michael Storch and Tom Costin, has emerged as the club’s latest would-be saviour with an offer reported to be in [...]
John Caudwell: Bring back Saturday jobs to fix youth unemployment March 11, 2026 Spiralling labour costs and regulation have decimated what used to be entry level jobs for teenagers, says John Caudwell I started work young. I grew worms in a box under my mother’s bed to sell to fishermen, traded cigarette packet coupons, knocked on doors selling soap for charity and later ran a small mail-order business [...]
TG Jones owner Modella Capital weighs latest asset sale March 10, 2026 The investment firm which owns TG Jones is reportedly considering the latest exit from its string of retail acquisitions. Modella Capital has been discussing a potential sale of Wynsors World of Shoes, a northern shoeseller which the firm acquired just three months ago, according to Sky News’ Mark Kleinman. The private equity firm has repeatedly [...]
Matalan gets £25m investment boost for store upgrades March 6, 2026 Clothing retailer Matalan has secured a £25m funding boost from its investors despite facing falling revenue and job losses last year, City AM can reveal. The firm’s core investor group – Invesco, Tresidor, Man Group and Napier Park – have committed the funding to accelerate the retailer’s plans to revamp its stores. The funding boost [...]