Nisa shopkeepers try to block Co-op takeover ahead of vote November 5, 2017 A set of Nisa shopkeepers are hoping to block a takeover of the business by the Co-operative Group. The Co-op made an offer to buy convenience store Nisa for £137.5m last month, with the board unanimously voting in favour of the deal. The shopkeepers will vote on the merger on 13 November. More than half [...]
Bakking up: Tesco and Waitrose supplier Bakkavor sacks off London float November 3, 2017 Food supplier Bakkavor has backed out of its plan to float on the London Stock Exchange, saying current market conditions are too volatile. The IPO was set to take place this month and would have valued the company, which creates microwave meals and other products for the UK’s biggest supermarkets, at up to £2bn. Read [...]
Dave Lewis tells court of tension and disagreement at Tesco at time of his appointment November 2, 2017 Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis gave evidence in the trial against his former colleagues today, as three former executives faced charges of fraud and false accounting. Lewis shone a light on the tensions already present at the supermarket when he was appointed in 2014 in proceedings at Southwark Crown Court today. The former Unilever executive [...]
Powa-founder Dan Wagner’s previous company ATTRAQT shares fall 25% after CFO finds ‘inaccuracies’ October 27, 2017 Shares in AIM-listed software company ATTRAQT lost a quarter of their value on Friday after its new CFO discovered “inaccuracies” on its books. ATTRAQT said that Eric Dodd, who became CFO at the start of September, found “inaccuracies in forecasting the timing of certain contracts and client “go-live” dates” following a review commissioned by the [...]
Suits you: Supermarket fashion is turning heads in the UK October 24, 2017 Cheap? Check. Convenience? Check. Choice? Check. Sainsbury’s launched a rival to Savile Row in outlets this week, giving shoppers a chance to buy suits with their weekly shop. The move is a classic example of how wafer-thin margins and the dog fight for market share is forcing supermarkets to turn towards different revenue streams – [...]
BT pension deficit could reduce by £4.4bn as expectations of an interest rate hike mount October 23, 2017 BT’s troublesome pension black hole is set to reduce by billions of pounds as expectations of an interest rate rise mount, analysts said today. Previously, consensus opinion has been that BT’s retirement deficit would swell from £8.7bn to around £11bn. But in a report by RBC Capital Markets, analysts said BT’s shortfall could halve to [...]
Sales rise but market share falls for Big Four grocers as Aldi and Lidl continue to grow October 17, 2017 Each of the big four grocers has grown sales but seen a decrease in market share as Aldi and Lidl can now boast half the total market’s growth, new figures show. Morrisons was the fastest growing of the large retailers, with sales up 2.8 per cent in the 12 weeks to 8 October, followed by [...]
Co-op has made a formal offer to buy convenience chain Nisa for £137.5m October 10, 2017 The Co-operative has offered to buy convenience chain Nisa for £137.5m. Nisa released a statement this morning saying that its board had unanimously recommended the offer to its members. The offer includes £137.5m for the full shareholding of the company plus associated deal costs of £5.5m, totting up to a total cost to Co-op of [...]
Tesco share price rises as it resumes dividend as profits rise to £562m in first half October 4, 2017 Tesco has resumed its dividend for the first time in three years today, after reporting a 667 per cent increase in pre-tax profit in the first six months of the year. Read more: This is how City analysts are reacting to Tesco’s did announcement The figures Profit before tax rose to £562m from £71m this [...]
Tesco directors were responsible for ‘bullying’ employees into false accounting collusion September 29, 2017 Three former Tesco directors have been called "bullies" in court as their trial for fraud and false accounting draws to a close. Former Tesco UK managing director Christopher Bush, former commercial director for food John Scouler, and former finance director Carl Rogberg were today described as the "generals" who gave orders to the "footsoldiers" by [...]