Supermarkets that reacted to slump are strongest July 21, 2009 THE usual assumption is that the stock market is a “leading indicator” for economic confidence. But as today’s cut of YouGov data shows, it doesn’t lead public sentiment, but is actually behind. The graph shows the BrandIndex scores for public perception of “value for money” (rolling monthly average) for Waitrose, J Sainsbury and M&S, alongside [...]
Duchy Originals facing a right royal takeover by Waitrose July 19, 2009 DUCHY Originals, Prince Charles’s organic food group, is thought likely to be sold to upmarket supermarket chain Waitrose after drastic measures have been required just to stay afloat. The firm, which focuses on running a sustainable farm and making charitable donations, may be sold to the supermarket giant as early as this week. Its profits [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS July 13, 2009 RBC Capital MarketsRBC Capital Markets, the corporate and investment banking arm of Royal Bank of Canada, yesterday announced the appointment of Dr John Roberts as non-executive chairman of Royal Bank of Canada Europe Ltd (RBCEL), the main European subsidiary of RBC, headquartered in London. Roberts has been with RBC since September 2005, when he joined [...]
Housebuilders hail stability but warn mortgage drought will hurt July 9, 2009 Barratt shows signs of stability as volumes pick up but mortgage drought continues Barratt Developments yesterday reported a 19 per cent fall in private house prices over the last 12 months and warned that a sustained improvement in training conditions would remain elusive until the availability of mortgage finance recovers. However, the group has witnessed [...]
Aldi and Lidl’s growth rate falling behind June 23, 2009 DISCOUNTERS like Aldi and Lidl are now growing less quickly than British stalwarts such as J Sainsbury and Morrisons in a sign that the traditional supermarkets’ fight-back is succeeding, a survey showed yesterday. Britain’s grocery market grew by a recession-beating 6.5 per cent in the 12 weeks to 14 June compared to the same period [...]
Fast food prospers as consumers loosen belts June 23, 2009 WHILE the recession continues to claim casualties from a variety of sectors, others are finding that an economic downturn has boosted business. One of the sectors whose BrandIndex scores have notably risen is fast food. As usual, we have created a “basket” of brands (Burger King, Domino’s, KFC, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and Wimpy). For comparison, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 21, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphBA CHIEF SNUBS SELECT COMMITTEEWillie Walsh, chief executive of British Airways, has refused to go before the House of Commons transport committee to give evidence on the future of aviation. The hearing, os scheduled for Wednesday next week – coincidentally the first day of the month that Walsh will work without pay [...]
Ocado considers London flotation by early 2010 June 17, 2009 ONLINE grocery retailer Ocado is considering an IPO, City A.M. can confirm, in a drastic u-turn by its finance director Jason Gissing. Sources close to the firm said it would use the capital from a London IPO to fund international expansion, after several foreign retailers expressed interest. It is considering floating on the stock exchange [...]
Quality brands are becoming more popular again June 16, 2009 FOR a while we saw the march of the “value” brands, as the recession helped Aldi and co make advances on their more expensive rivals. The graph shows what actually happened to brand values. We have created two baskets of brands – seven associated with lower-end or “value-for-money’ (Aldi, Morrisons, Primark, Matalan, RyanAir, Walls, Subway), [...]
Met Office holds the secret to summer success June 14, 2009 I THOUGHT this whole “green shoots” argument was becoming a bit clichéd…then we started getting results from the DIY retailers. In a strictly horticultural sense “green shoots” went a long way towards propping up earnings at Home Retail last week, as sunny weather motivated the great British public to snap up gardening gear, barbecues, bikes [...]