Sports Direct confirms no deal for Office June 30, 2014 Sports Direct has confirmed that it is not considering an acquisition of footwear retailer Office. The FTSE 100 company said recent speculation over a possible deal was "unhelpful to the customers, staff, suppliers and other stakeholders of both companies". The board of the UK sports retailer has had its fair share of concerns over past [...]
Sports Direct fears third bonus defeat June 30, 2014 SPORTS Direct’s third attempt to reward its billionaire founder Mike Ashley looks set to fail this week after three major shareholder bodies publicly urged investors to vote against the latest bonus scheme. The sports retail giant could decide to call off Wednesday’s shareholder meeting if the proxy votes – due in today – indicate that [...]
Charlie Bracken: The man behind Liberty Global’s deal spree now has his eyes on Europe June 30, 2014 Finance boss Charlie Bracken tells Oliver Smith why content is king With a cable network connecting over 24m households across Europe, a figure that will jump to 28m when its €10bn (£8bn) takeover of Netherlands cable operator Ziggo closes later this year, finance chief Charlie Bracken believes that content is fast becoming the new [...]
House of Fraser sales lifted by demand for own label brands June 25, 2014 DEPARTMENT store chain House of Fraser saw same store sales rise two per cent in the first three months of the year, as customers snapped up its own-label brands. House labels, including Linea and Kenneth Cole, jumped eight per cent in the 13 weeks to 26 April while branded and concessions sales both rose by [...]
London Report: FTSE drops on worrying data on the economy June 24, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index slipped slightly yesterday, led lower by mining stocks, as signs of economic weakness in Europe and growing tension in Iraq made investors cautious. The FTSE 100 closed down 0.2 per cent, or 13.49 points, at 6,787.06 points following gains in early trade. The UK mining index, down 0.8 per cent, was [...]
Fidelity joins rush for shares in MySale after rocky market debut June 19, 2014 US fund group Fidelity has snapped up more than six per cent of MySale, the online fashion site backed by Sir Philip Green and Newcastle United chairman Mike Ashley. The group, one of the largest mutual fund managers in the world, said it had bought 9.2m shares in MySale after it floated on Tuesday, worth [...]
Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct looking for a retail hookup with Mysale June 18, 2014 Retail giants Mike Ashley and Sir Philip Green are set to team up after Ashley’s Sports Direct swooped for a 4.8 per cent stake in Australian fashion website MySale, in which Green holds a 25 per cent stake. Sports Direct said the move could help it boost its presence in Australasia and Asia, where MySale [...]
Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct swoops on MySale stock June 18, 2014 Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct yesterday snapped up a 4.8 per cent stake in online fashion site MySale just a day after a pricing error caused shares to tank on its stock market debut. MySale plunged 27 per cent on Tuesday after the share price was listed as 2.26p instead of 226p, leading trading programmes to [...]
M&M Direct sold for £140m after listing snubbed June 16, 2014 BUDGET online sports retailer M&M Direct is set to be sold for up to £140m – reversing plans for a stock market listing in London. The company, founded as a catalogue retailer in 1997, has clinched a deal to be acquired by Danish clothing outfit Bestseller. The firm’s current backer, private equity firm TA Associates, [...]
Sports Direct eyes Cotswold June 12, 2014 SPORTS Direct has joined the bidding for Cotswold Outdoor, as Mike Ashley’s high street retailer looks to the great outdoors again following its unsuccessful bid Blacks Leisure two years ago. The firm is understood to have lodged a bid for Cotswold’s parent company AS Adventure, which owner Lion Capital has put up for sale with [...]