Dixons Carphone boss Sebastian James steals Retail Week Power List crown from Next’s Simon Wolfson June 26, 2015 Dixons Carphone chief executive Sebastian James has been crowned the most powerful person in British retailing, knocking Next's Simon Wolfson off the top spot. James has stolen the number one position in Retail Week's annual Power List, published today, for his work successfully merging the two retailers, creating a £10bn business that swooped into [...]
Tesco’s share price soars after reporting smallest decline in more than a year June 26, 2015 Tesco's share price climbed 3.6 per cent this morning as investors digested what appear to be the first signs of a turnaround under new chief executive Dave Lewis. The troubled supermarket has reported its smallest declines in more than a year, while volumes are up. The figures Tesco has stemmed its declines – group [...]
Regulators list problems with Poundland’s £55m 99p Stores merger June 25, 2015 Britain’s competition watchdog unveiled a list of issues it is exploring around Poundland’s £55m merger with 99p Stores after the discount chain agreed to push ahead with an in-depth probe last month. Poundland, which floated on the stock market last year, announced in February that it was going to buy 99p Stores. However, the Competition [...]
Best of the Brokers for 24 June 2015 June 23, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com ASSOCIATED BRITISH FOODS RBC Capital Markets has downgraded the Primark owner from “outperform” to “sector perform” with a target price of 3,200p. The broker said that while Primark relatively rare international roll-out story, the company is lacking earnings momentum and its sees more [...]
Tesco shareholders encouraged to revolt at AGM over Dave Lewis’ pay, Philip Clarke’s golden goodbye and John Allan’s appointment as chairman June 23, 2015 Tesco shareholders are being encouraged to stage a revolt at the supermarket's AGM on Friday, with investor group Pirc advising they vote against key resolutions. Chief executive Dave Lewis' pay could come under particular scrutiny if Pensions and Investment Research Consultants – one of the largest investor groups in the UK – gets its [...]
John Lewis has started selling the iPhone, Samsung Galaxy S6 and other smartphones, partnering Vodafone to offer contracts June 23, 2015 High street favourite John Lewis is going mobile and will for the first time stock smartphones on its shelves in an ambitious move to sate people's appetite for mobile devices and grab a share of the rocketing market. More than 25 sim-free handsets will go on sale online from today, while the department store is [...]
Tesco tops suppliers’ naughty list over groceries code June 22, 2015 Tesco has been on the receiving end of more than half of issues raised by suppliers with the new Groceries Code adjudicator in the last year. The troubled supermarket was at the centre of 54 per cent of complaints made, with 11 per cent of Tesco's suppliers going to the new government ombudsman, according [...]
Housing market looking healthy in latest figures – London Report June 21, 2015 EVIDENCE of improvement in the housing market is expected this week when the British Bankers Association releases its mortgage approvals data for May. The figures, out on Wednesday, are likely to show that approvals for house purchases rose for a fifth consecutive month in May, climbing to a 14-month high of 43,800 from 42,116 in [...]
Tesco first quarter results and AGM: Three things to expect from Friday’s figures June 21, 2015 Tesco will update the market on its first-quarter figures – the first since reporting its biggest ever loss – while executives will face shareholders at its AGM. Here's what to expect from the supermarket on Friday. 1. The numbers will continue tumbling The supermarket’s first quarter is unlikely to tell a different story from the [...]
Lidl “ale assault” will rival supermarket beer offers in latest price war after “claret offensive” success June 21, 2015 Lidl's is embarking on an "ale assault" with a new beer range to rival the big four supermarkets after the success of last year's "claret offensive". The discounter has now switched its attention from wine to beer, and will launch more than 60 new brews onto its shelves from Monday, many priced more cheaply than [...]