Unilever withdraws outlook after coronavirus hits sales April 23, 2020 Unilever has withdrawn its outlook for the year after reporting sales were flat in the first quarter, despite an increase in demand for hygiene and in-home food products. Underlying sales growth was flat with 0.2 per cent from volume and negative 0.2 per cent from price. Turnover increased 0.2 per cent to €12.4bn. The coronavirus [...]
Gordon Brothers buys Laura Ashley brand and archives April 22, 2020 Gordon Brothers has bought the Laura Ashley brand out of administration, however the future of its 147 high street stores is still undecided. The clothing and home retailer’s archives and intellectual property were also included in the deal, the US advisory firm announced today. Gordon Brothers said it will partner with the existing management team [...]
Boohoo suffers coronavirus sales hit after bumper year April 22, 2020 Boohoo Group today posted a huge surge in revenue and profit for the full year but warned the outbreak of coronavirus had hit growth in March. The figures Boohoo’s revenue rose 44 per cent to £1.2bn in the year to the end of February 2020. Pre-tax profit jumped 54 per cent to £92.2m. Net cash [...]
Fever Tree sales remain strong as drinkers stockpiled for lockdown April 22, 2020 Fever Tree has enjoyed strong sales in its key markets as consumers increase the frequency and size of orders during the coronavirus lockdown. The tonic retailer said its “off-trade channel” which accounts for 55 per cent of group sales was characterised by a period of strong sales in the initial weeks of the crisis. As [...]
Queen’s Award for International Trade brings sweet smell of success for SA Designer Parfums April 21, 2020 SA Designer Parfums was founded in 2001 by the Mehta family and has grown from its humble origins to be an innovative force in the world of fine fragrance. It specialises in the manufacturing and distribution of fragrances either owned or operated under license. The current brands in the company portfolio comprise a variety of [...]
Mobile messaging experts Esendex succeed with innovative debt collection solution April 21, 2020 Despite the emergence of other communication platforms like WhatsApp, Apple Business Chat, Facebook Messenger and RCS, 28 years after the first simple text message was sent, SMS still holds its own in a world of rapid technological communication advances. It’s a practical, reliable and immediate way of sending appointment reminders, payment alerts and notifications and, [...]
Cath Kidston closes all stores as part of rescue deal April 21, 2020 Cath Kidston will permanently close all 60 of its stores in the UK under a rescue deal with its Hong Kong-based owner Baring Private Equity Asia (BPEA). The fashion label confirmed that parts of its business had been transferred by administrators following an independent sale process to CK Acquisitions, a company owned by BPEA. Under [...]
Coronavirus: Joules secures £15m credit boost as crisis hits high street April 21, 2020 Joules today said it has added £15m to its revolving credit facility as the fashion retailer battles a sharp decline in sales caused by the coronavirus crisis. The credit boost, agreed with Barclays, follows a share placing earlier this month that raised £15m. Joules has already taken a number of measures to mitigate the impact [...]
UK coronavirus lockdown: Consumers spend more on video games and online shopping April 20, 2020 Britons have been spending more on video games and with Amazon, Apple and Argos during the UK coronavirus lockdown, according to the latest research. Digital bank Starling said its customers spent almost 300 per cent more on Playstation and Nintendo in the week ending 5 April compared to the week to 15 March, before the [...]
DFS mulls equity issue to soften impact of extended coronavirus lockdown April 20, 2020 DFS has confirmed it is in the process of negotiating additional funding and is preparing a equity issue in order to cushion the blow of the coronavirus pandemic. The sofa retailer said it was negotiating an additional debt facility of £60-70m with its existing lenders, to supplement the existing bank facility of £250m. Alongside this [...]