Lego builds sales with Star Wars and Harry Potter kits March 4, 2020 Lego built sales growth last year, defying the shrinking toy market, as shoppers snapped up Star Wars and Harry Potter themed kits. Revenue jumped six per cent last year to 38.5bn Danish krone (£4.48bn), up from three per cent the previous year, putting it ahead of Barbie owner Mattel and Hasbro, the maker of My Little [...]
Coronavirus: Retailers battle supply chain issues as consumers stockpile March 4, 2020 UK retailers are battling against supply chain issues as consumers rush to stockpile due to the outbreak of coronavirus. More than a third of UK households are worried about product shortages due to coronavirus, and one in 10 shoppers have started to stockpile. Almost a quarter of retailers also said that supply chain disruption is [...]
McLaren confident despite coronavirus sales hit in China March 3, 2020 McLaren boss Mike Flewitt has told City A.M. that the supercar manufacturer “probably won’t achieve [its] yearly goal for sales in China” due to the coronavirus impact. However, despite the knock-on effect, he said that the luxury car maker would “still achieve a reasonable level of sales”. Flewitt added that he was more concerned about [...]
Dixons Carphone shakes up executive team March 3, 2020 Dixons Carphone has announced a shake up of its executive team, as its chief operating officer steps down after 11 years at the company. Alan Ritchie will leave the business in June, and chief digital officer Mark Alsop will take on chief operating officer duties alongside his current role from 4 May. Dixons Carphone also [...]
Premier League broadcasting: What does Amazon’s initial success with Prime Video mean for the market? March 3, 2020 Amazon broadcast its first live football matches in December, showing 20 Premier League games to subscribers on its Prime Video platform. The decision to make a first foray into the sector was a brave, albeit relatively small, one for the US retail giant. Now that the dust has settled, it looks increasingly like an intelligent [...]
Travis Perkins returns to profit despite ‘challenging market’ March 3, 2020 Building materials business Travis Perkins said today it had swung to a profit in 2019. It said operating profit was £232m, compared to a £22m loss last year. Adjusted operating profit rose 7.8 per cent to £442m, despite a “challenging market backdrop”. Revenue grew 3.2 per cent to £6.9bn, with like-for-like revenue growth of 3.8 [...]
Lidl crowned UK’s fastest growing supermarket March 3, 2020 Lidl was the fastest growing supermarket in the UK over the last 12 weeks, taking the crown from online grocer Ocado. The German discounter increased sales by 11.4 per cent in the 12 weeks to 24 February, becoming Britain’s fastest growing grocer for the first time since November 2017, as it opened its 800th store [...]
Coronavirus concerns see hand sanitiser sales leap 255 per cent March 3, 2020 Coronavirus fears saw sales of hand sanitiser spike 255 per cent in February, according to supermarket data released today. Sakes of liquid soaps also rose seven per cent as shoppers hit the shelves as the number of coronavirus cases outside China rose sharply last month, research firm Kantar said. Sales of household cleaners jumped 10 [...]
Goldman Sachs builds up 8.5 per cent voting rights in Metro Bank March 2, 2020 Goldman Sachs has built up 8.48 per cent voting rights in troubled British lender Metro Bank, according to regulatory filings. Metro Bank’s share price has collapsed almost 90 per cent since early 2019, when it disclosed an almost £1bn accounting error. The challenger bank plunged to a £131m loss last year following the scandal, which [...]
Teddy Sagi’s Labtech sells Holborn Links Estate for £245m March 2, 2020 Labtech, the property investment firm owned by billionaire businessman Teddy Sagi, has completed the sale of Holborn Links Estate, which includes the historic Sicilian Avenue, for £245m. Investors Tristan Capital Partners and Cording Real Estate Group have bought the West End office and retail portfolio to capitalise on the opening of Crossrail stations at Tottenham [...]