Tesco set to launch discount store brand next week September 11, 2018 Supermarket chain Tesco is set to launch a new discount store format next week in a bid to compete with German rivals Aldi and Lidl. The UK's biggest supermarket advertised recruitment for retail assistants, customer service assistants and manager roles for a new store format in Chatteris, Cambridgeshire, earlier this year. Read more: Jamie Oliver joins up with Tesco with [...]
Jamie Oliver joins up with Tesco with new healthy recipe remit September 10, 2018 Chef Jamie Oliver has entered into a partnership with supermarket giant Tesco, seven years after leaving an 11-year advertising gig with rival Sainsbury's that saw him earn over £10m. The chef and best-selling author, whose fee has not been disclosed, is producing recipes and healthy eating tips for Tesco, aiming to “change eating habits”. “I’m [...]
Asda ends price guarantee scheme as it eyes lower prices after Sainsbury’s merger September 6, 2018 Asda has joined the rest of the big four in ending a price guarantee initiative, saying it is "less relevant" to customers. The tool will be available until 3 October this year, and customers will still be able to redeem their vouchers for 28 days from the date they receive them. The grocer's chief customer [...]
Marston’s appoints Lazard’s UK CEO as its new chairman September 6, 2018 The UK boss of financial adviser Lazard is headed to the pub with a new job as chairman of Marston's. William Rucker will take on the position from the beginning of next month, taking over from interim chair and Tesco veteran Carolyn Bradley. He has been chief executive of Lazard in the UK since 2004. He has previously [...]
Berry Bros & Rudd boss Dan Jago interview: Uncorking Britain’s oldest wine merchant September 3, 2018 The flagship shop of Berry Brothers & Rudd has remained unchanged for over 300 years. Famous customers, from Byron to Churchill, have stepped through the doorway and left St James’s Street behind for a wood-panelled room replete with bottles of top-notch plonk. In the back room, one of the walls has been repurposed after previously [...]
Disaster-struck TSB set to lose three of its executives August 24, 2018 Three top TSB executives are set to retire from the bank, which is still recovering from an IT meltdown that has cost it more than £176m to date. Treasurer Ian Firth and chief marketing officer Nigel Gilbert are both retiring at the end of next month, TSB confirmed today. Current marketing director Pete Markey will [...]
Ditch the Chequers Agreement and Hammond can scrap his ‘Amazon tax’ August 22, 2018 Thanks to the Prime Minister’s commitment to raise NHS spending by an additional £20bn, the chancellor is now in a quandary. Philip Hammond signed up to the theory that raising taxes increases revenues, which goes against the volumes of evidence that it actually depresses economic activity, encourages switching of spending to other lower-taxed areas, and [...]
Price is right for Asda as it scores fifth quarter of growth August 16, 2018 Asda continued its streak of growth yesterday with a fifth consecutive rise in same-store sales ahead of its proposed merger with Sainsbury’s. The supermarket posted a 2.4 per cent improvement in net sales in its second quarter results, fuelled by its online business and a 25 per cent jump in sales of its George clothing [...]
Supermarket sweep: Which FTSE 100 grocer is the best buy? August 14, 2018 British supermarkets haven’t had an easy ride lately. There’s been plenty for them to worry about – the biggest being the rising cost of imports as sterling has continued to slide (the pound dropped to €1.11 and $1.28 last week). A weak pound has tightened profit margins. And with heavy competition from discount retailers, passing [...]
Fontelunga Hotel & Villas review: A beautifully renovated Tuscan guest house, nestled in the quiet hillsides surrounding Cortona August 13, 2018 Tuscany is wonderful. There are maybe only three or four places in the world that are more beautiful than Tuscany, but none of them are so damningly near to our own bleak, grey island. In Tuscany, tall cypress trees stand in long lines like great leafy quills, jabbed into the rolling green countryside by some [...]