Moss Bros to open new shops as sales climb up for suits retailer April 5, 2022 Suits retailer Moss Bros has revealed plans for new shops after the retailer said trade had been boosted after it launched a range of casual clothes. The men’s formalwear chain, which hosts an estate of around 100 stores, reported a £93.1m turnover for the year to January. This was compared to pre-pandemic turnover of £128.3m, [...]
Supermarket till sales down four per cent last month as online shopping and cost of living hit hard April 5, 2022 Supermarket till sales continue to feel the impact of online buying brought about by the pandemic, with a four per cent fall last month. A new study indicates that online sales also fell almost 20 per cent from last year, as the cost of living crisis continues to change consumer habits. The report by NielsenIQ [...]
Three out of four Brits consider new job or career change as cost of living crisis messes up their lives April 4, 2022 New research shared with City A.M. this morning suggests that a record three out of four workers are considering a new job because of the cost-of-living crisis. Jobs site CV-Library said its study indicated that pay was now the main driver for people thinking of finding different work. Its survey of more than 4,000 professional [...]
Fever pitch: Battle for Ted Baker intensifies as new owners set to face post-pandemic high street ‘challenges’ April 4, 2022 Fashion chain Ted Baker has seen its share price boom after kicking off a formal sale process, with a third US private equity proposal. Analysts said the proposal comes as valuations of British companies have fallen in the wake of the pandemic and Brexit. Ted Baker has received an improved proposal from Sycamore, in addition [...]
Bidding war looming: Ted Baker launches formal sale process as retail giant receives yet another takeover offer April 4, 2022 Ted Baker has launched a formal sale process after receiving a third takeover move by US private equity suitor Sycamore Partners. Shares in the company jumped on Monday morning after the fashion brand said it had also received another “unsolicited” approach by an unnamed party. It comes a week after Ted Baker rejected two takeover [...]
Lush lathers up for return to profit amid buy out of US partner April 3, 2022 Soap-seller Lush has bought out its US partner in a bid to almost double its sales in the UK. According to The Financial Times, the high street name is eager to pump cash into rebuilding its UK operations after they took a hit amid Covid restrictions. The retailer returned to profit in its last financial [...]
Whitbread searching for new CEO as Alison Brittain plans to step aside April 3, 2022 The hospitality powerhouse behind Premier Inn is hunting for a chief executive to replace Alison Brittain. Brittain is readying to step aside from her role heading Whitbread, following seven years in the top job, according to The Sunday Times. Headhunters at Spencer Stuart have been hired by Whitbread to find a suitable replacement for Brittain. [...]
Pop-up firm Sook tops £1m sales as Instagram businesses dabble with bricks-and-mortar retail April 1, 2022 Pop-up retail company Sook has hit £1m sales, with CEO John Hoyle telling CityA.M. an “explosion” of social media brands are looking for flexible spaces. Speaking to CityA.M., Hoyle said small businesses who use TikTok and Instagram are increasingly keen to venture into physical retail on a flexible basis. The company has seven spaces in [...]
Fashion chain Quiz anticipates profit for first time in three years April 1, 2022 High street clothes-seller Quiz said it anticipates the first year of profit since 2019, after heavy pandemic losses. The beleagured chain forecast a profit before tax of some £500,000 in the year to the end of March. It last made a profit of £600,000 in the year ending March 2019. Total full year group revenue [...]
After an explosion of apps and billion dollar valuations, is the ultra-fast bubble about to burst? April 1, 2022 Any Londoner on a stroll down a main road in the city is bound to encounter a handful of instant grocery delivery riders zipping past. With Getir, Gorillas and Gopuff among other players on the scene, the category has exploded over the past couple of years with some receiving billion-dollar valuations. The pandemic saw many [...]