Christmas 2014: Amazon delivering until December 24, while Marks & Spencer, House of Fraser and Asos face capacity problems December 16, 2014 Worried you've left it too late to order Christmas presents online? You need to get your skates on if you want to avoid paying for special delivery, but some retailers are offering premium services up to the last minute. A new survey of retailers has found a number of businesses that promise to deliver [...]
Best of the Brokers for 16 December 2014 December 15, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com SPORTS DIRECT Numis reiterated its “buy” rating following “robust” first-half results, with sports retail sales’ growth of 1.5 per cent during the second quarter. The broker noted that Sports Direct’s portfolio was set to grow to include between 30 to 40 new stores [...]
Scottish FA summon Ashley over Newcastle and Rangers holdings December 15, 2014 NEWCASTLE United owner Mike Ashley has been accused of breaking Scottish Football Association rules preventing influence over more than one club in relation to his shareholding in Rangers. The Scottish FA has also accused Sports Direct tycoon Ashley, who has an estimated personal fortune of around £4bn, of not acting in the best interests of [...]
Chelsea FC becomes first team to pay the living wage of £9.15 an hour in London December 11, 2014 Chelsea has become the first professional football club to be accredited as a Living Wage employer by the Living Wage Foundation, the club said yesterday. The accreditation means that from January, Chelsea will pay all its directly employed staff a living wage – £9.15 an hour in London and £7.85 outside the capital. The rate [...]
Sports Direct brushes off England’s early World Cup exit but results show even Mike Ashley can’t predict the weather December 11, 2014 Sports Direct has brushed off England's disappointing World Cup performance but it seems owner Mike Ashley is not immune to the unseasonal weather. The figures Group revenue rose 6.5 per cent to £1.4bn in the six months to 26 October. Underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation rose 11pc to £203.1m, excluding charges related to the [...]
Tesco in further turmoil after profits tumble December 9, 2014 Investors fled for cover yesterday as Tesco warned on profits for the fourth time in five months, raising fears in the City that the ailing supermarket could become a takeover target. Analysts at investment bank Espirito Santo compared Tesco’s demise to that of Sears in 2004, when the US retailer – once the [...]
Olympic chiefs scrap sport cap December 8, 2014 SQUASH and baseball could feature in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) yesterday voted to drop a 28-sport cap which currently governs the showpiece event. The new directive forms part the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms and will instead see future summer Games restricted to 10,500 athletes and 310 events. [...]
Explosions, chemical warfare and spying: After a Heathrow plane’s near miss, here are six terrifying ways drones could be used against us December 8, 2014 After a mystery drone nearly collided with an aeroplane as it came in to land at Heathrow in July, there have been further warnings surrounding the threats posed by unmanned air vehicles (UAV). The UK Airprox Board (UKAB), which oversees air passenger safety, is working on a report confirming the Airbus A320 pilot saw the drone [...]
Retail data to show UK spending boost from Black Friday – London Report December 7, 2014 Black Friday is expected to have added a healthy boost to November’s retail sales, which the British Retail Consortium is due to announce tomorrow. Howard Archer, of Global IHS Insight, said: “While consumers are always keen to take advantage of bargains, particularly in the run-up to Christmas, the desire for bargains has undoubtedly been heightened [...]
How government is opening its supply chain – to small business’s benefit December 7, 2014 If you’ve never considered government as a potential client for your business, think again. Government spends £230bn every year on products and services across all layers – from central and local government, to the police, NHS, and emergency services. This may not previously have appealed to the small business owner, as the perception has always [...]