BT eyes £80m sale of legal software division Tikit as it focuses on full-fibre August 4, 2019 BT is said to be lining up a sale of its £80m legal software business as it looks to focus its efforts on rolling out full-fibre broadband across the UK. Tikit, which provides lawyers with software for time recording and case management, has been added to a list of fringe BT businesses up for sale, [...]
Mike Ashley and Philip Day in battle to buy Jack Wills August 3, 2019 High street giants Mike Ashley and Philip Day are embroiled in a battle to takeover Jack Wills, which is on the brink of administration. The billionaires’ companies, Sports Direct and Edinburgh Woollen Mill, are the two remaining bidders for the fashion chain, according to Sky News. Read more: Majestic Wine sells brand and stores for [...]
Majestic Wine sells brand and stores for £95m to focus on Naked Wines August 2, 2019 High street retailer Majestic Wine is set to sell all its stores as well as its brand for £95m as it transitions into an online-only company. US private equity firm Fortress is buying the outlets, securing 1,000 jobs as it committed to keeping the 200-store network, which had a turnover of £300m last year. Read [...]
KPMG appointed administrators as Laterooms and Superbreak collapse affecting thousands of holiday-goers August 2, 2019 KPMG has been appointed as administrators to Laterooms and Superbreak following the companies collapses on Thursday. Both firms are owned by the Malvern Group, which has ceased trading, after Cox & Kings India, which owned a 49 per cent stake in the company, defaulted on loan repayments. Read more: Pets at Home set to beat [...]
Pets at Home set to beat profit expectations as revenue jumps 10 per cent August 2, 2019 Pets at Home revealed that its revenue had grown by 9.9 per cent to £303.4m for the period 29 March to 18 July in a scheduled trading update released today. Retail revenue was up 8.7 per cent to £266.4m and vet group revenue was up 18.8 per cent to £37m for the period this year, [...]
UK bonds bounce back in June as equity funds lose out August 1, 2019 Bonds are back in favour with UK investors but equities have continued to struggle amid ongoing political uncertainty. £2.4bn flowed into bonds during June – taking this year’s total inflows to almost £6bn – according to figures released by the Investment Association (IA). This included net retail sales of £1.1bn for UK Strategic Bond funds [...]
Hotel Chocolat goes into meltdown over missing ‘Chocmobile’ August 1, 2019 Luxury chocolate retailer Hotel Chocolat has appealed for help in finding a missing van, nicknamed the ‘Chocmobile’ Read more: Sweet like chocolate: Hotel Chocolat credits relentless innovation for sales boost The chocolatier said the “beloved” van had been stolen from its Hertfordshire headquarters earlier this week, and called on the public for help in tracking [...]
Prada revenue up despite banning end-of-season sales August 1, 2019 Prada reported a slight increase in revenue today boosted by its wholesale business and full price sales after the luxury retailer banned end-of-season discounting. The designer brand posted net revenue of €1.57bn (£1.43bn), an increase of two per cent on last year, as full price sales growth offset the decision to stop seasonal markdowns. Read [...]
Westfield owner suffers income drop as UK retailers shut shops and cut rents August 1, 2019 Retail landlord Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) suffered a drop in UK rental income in the first six months of the year as the property giant’s two London sites were hit by store closures and leasing delays. Like-for-like net rental income was down 3.1 per cent compared to the previous year as tenants – struggling in a challenging [...]
Buoyant Next shows retailers how it is done July 31, 2019 Investors exposed to the troubled sector of retail property were dealt a fresh blow during trading today. Shopping centre landlord Intu led the market fallers after it cancelled its dividend and posted mounting losses, wiping 32 per cent off an already-battered share price. Read more: Shop prices fall as retailers tempt customers with discounts Although Intu’s downward spiral [...]