Eat Out to Help Out wipes £155m off supermarket sales September 15, 2020 The government’s Eat Out to Help Out discount scheme saw £155m knocked off supermarket sales last month as consumers ate fewer meals at home. Brits spent less at supermarkets in the four weeks to 6 September compared to July as the discount scheme encouraged people to venture out to restaurants and cafes. Alcohol supermarket sales [...]
H&M makes fashionable comeback in coronavirus turnaround September 15, 2020 H&M surpassed analyst estimates on profit in its most recent quarter, helping the world’s second biggest fashion retailer to bounce back after the coronavirus pandemic weathered sales. Profit before tax for the three months to the end of August was around 2bn Swedish crowns (£177.1m), beating analysts’ mean forecast of 191m crowns according to data [...]
Ocado sales surge as consumers switch to online shopping September 15, 2020 Ocado sales soared in the third quarter as more customers continued to switch to online shopping due to the pandemic. Retail revenue surged 52 per cent to £587.3m in the 13 weeks to 30 August due to high demand for home grocery deliveries. Ocado’s share price jumped 5.99 per cent this morning after it forecast [...]
Klarna valued at $11bn after fresh fundraising round September 15, 2020 Swedish fintech Klarna is the highest-valued private fintech in Europe after a fresh funding round valued the group at $11bn (£8.54bn). The “buy now pay later” group secured $650m (£504.6m) in an equity funding round led by investment firm Silver Lake alongside Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC and Blackrock. Concurrently, Merian Chrysalis, TCV, Northzone and [...]
Eve Sleep narrows loss as post-Covid sales bounce back September 15, 2020 Mattress maker Eve Sleep today reported a narrower loss in the first half of the year as it hailed a strong improvement in trading since April. The figures Eve Sleep reported revenue of £12.2m in the six months to the end of June, down five per cent on the same period last year. Statutory loss [...]
Tax-free shopping: Give the high street the shot in the arm it so urgently needs September 15, 2020 As the Brexit debate rages on, and with the end of the transition period looming, the pressure is on to draw a line under deal talks by the end of October. Much has been made of the potential benefits for UK consumers in the event of no-deal – a Brexit Bonus, if you will. But [...]
Domino’s to create 6,000 new jobs September 15, 2020 Pizza takeaway chain Domino’s has announced it is creating 6,000 new roles ahead of the crucial Christmas trading period. The fast food firm is hiring 5,000 new employees as well as 1,000 placements under the government’s Kickstart scheme to help young people get jobs after the coronavirus pandemic. Among the 5,000 new roles, Domino’s will [...]
Aldi launches first click and collect trial September 14, 2020 Aldi has launched its first click and collect trial as the budget supermarket seeks to attract new customers amid rising demand for online shopping. The German discounter is running the trial for Aldi employees from a store in the Midlands and is planning to extend the service to customers in the coming weeks. If the [...]
New Look to warn landlords it could collapse without further rent cuts September 12, 2020 New Look will warn landlords next week that it could go bust if it isn’t granted further rent cuts. The high street brand has almost 500 stores across the UK and employs more than 12,000 people. It is set to propose its second company voluntary arrangement (CVA) within two years after its sales suffered as [...]
We are on the precipice of a price war, and the losers will be workers September 11, 2020 James Reed argues that nobody stands to gain from a price war in the long run – least of all Britain’s workers. Over 100m meals were claimed on the government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme last month, but the end of the measure on 31 August has left businesses in the hospitality sector split [...]