Apple to resume selling older iPhone models in Germany after Qualcomm dispute February 14, 2019 Apple is to resume sales of its older iPhone models in Germany, but only with chips from Qualcomm as part of a long-running patent dispute. The tech giant had to pull some iPhone models out of the country last year in order to comply with a lawsuit won by Qualcomm, which argued Apple had infringed [...]
Coca-Cola bottler core profits fizz February 14, 2019 A soft drinks bottler led the FTSE 100 market fallers this morning after analysts noted that finance costs had offset strong organic growth, which has been boosted by a rise in appetite for sparkling beverages and a return to growth in its key Russian market. The figures Coca-Cola HBC AG said this morning that profits before [...]
New Look moves into the black February 13, 2019 Fast-fashion chain New Look moved into the black in its year-to-date results this morning, with cost savings and a third-quarter bump in sales providing a much-needed boon for the embattled retailer as it looks to tackle a £1bn pile. The figures Revenue hit £1.02bn in the 39 weeks to 22 December, slipping five per cent from [...]
Dunelm grows profits but remains ‘cautious’ as Brexit-related risks approach February 13, 2019 Profit and revenue climbed at Dunelm in the first six months of its financial year, the home furnishing retailer revealed today, but also warned its outlook is “cautious” in the face of Brexit uncertainty. The figures Profit before tax grew 14 per cent year on year to £70m while like-for-like revenue rose 6.9 per cent to [...]
Gucci shrugs off China troubles after trumping sales estimates February 12, 2019 Kering’s flagship Gucci brand became the latest in a swathe of luxury retail names to buck fears of a slowdown in demand from Chinese shoppers today, after the Italian label trumped sales expectations for the final quarter of 2018. Outperforming many of its peers in the fourth quarter of last year, Kering posted a 23.3 per [...]
Busting the millennial myth February 11, 2019 Last month I was invited to present at a conference in Berlin; I spent a couple of days preparing and got up at 4am to fly over. The speaker before me confidently told the audience that millennials lacked their elders’ work ethic so would drag down productivity and GDP growth. As I took to the [...]
Watchdog delays final report on Sainsbury’s-Asda supermarket merger February 11, 2019 The UK's competition watchdog today extended its probe into the supermarket tie-up between Sainsbury's and Asda by eight weeks. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it had decided to delay the publication of its report to give it enough time to “reach a fully reasoned final decision” on the £12bn merger. An inquiry group [...]
Iceland mulls bid for potential Sainsbury’s-Asda store sell-offs February 11, 2019 Frozen foods giant Iceland is mulling a move to snap up supermarket stores that Sainsbury’s and Asda could be forced to offload as part of their proposed tie-up. "We are looking at everything for sure," Iceland's managing director Richard Walker told the FT. "Food retail drives footfall and we are the only supermarket that is [...]
One in 10 high street shops lie empty as retailers face spring reckoning February 10, 2019 The extent of the crisis facing UK retailers was laid bare this morning after new figures revealed one in 10 high street shops lie empty, while a string of upcoming cost increases could deal a death blow to struggling stores in the spring. Rising taxes and a shift to online shopping have ravaged British high [...]
Ocado robot warehouse fire extinguished February 8, 2019 A major fire which has destroyed one of Ocado’s flagship robotics distribution centres has been extinguished this afternoon, putting an end to a three-day inferno at the firm's Andover site. The delivery giant's share price climbed three per cent today, recovering some losses in the blue-chip firm's stock value after investors feared for the firm's [...]