Planet Organic rescued by founders but three London stores will close April 25, 2023 The founders of Planet Organic have bought the business back from administrators in a bid to keep the health-focused grocery store alive, but four stores will be forced to close as part of the process. Advisors Interpath sold the struggling chain to Bioren Limited, a business that was set up last month by the founders [...]
Why is John Lewis overhauling its loyalty card scheme? April 25, 2023 John Lewis and Waitrose are both preparing to launch new loyalty card schemes as the partnership looks to turn around the business. The John Lewis Partnership, which owns the department store and upmarket grocery store, has drafted in Dunnhumby, the company which helped establish Tesco’s clubcard scheme in the 1990s and, also, promotions business Eagle [...]
Ranking the best – and worst – supermarket quiches ahead of the Coronation April 19, 2023 Okay, this article may seem a bit quiche – sorry, we mean niche – but let’s face it, with the King’s Coronation around the corner and quiche the chosen celebratory dish, we all need to know which quiche to put on the table come Coronation weekend. We’ve done the hard work so you don’t have [...]
The best eco friendly wine for Earth Day April 19, 2023 Boxed wine might remind you of your university days, but hear me out: it’s loads better for the environment and tastes pretty good, too. We’re all becoming more aware of our environmental footprint and any wine producer not creating wines in an eco-friendly way is really falling behind the times. Gen Z in particular want [...]
Your City guide to this year’s must have chocolate Easter eggs: From exploding candy to hot cross bun flavoured treats March 31, 2023 We’ve nibbled, munched and even crunched some of this year’s chocolate Easter egg offerings, and we even tried a donut-egg; you’ll have to read on to find out how that fared. Here’s our review of the best and the worst Easter eggs you can buy this year; we’ve included City-based retailers as well as supermarket [...]
What next for Waitrose? Supermarket quits Planet Organic talks after John Lewis fiasco March 29, 2023 Waitrose has pulled out of secret talks to acquire a stake in rival health supermarket Planet Organic. The high-end supermarket, which is part of the John Lewis Partnership, ceased discussions late last week about a possible agreement, according to reports first published in Sky News, Sources told the outlet that the deal would have meant [...]
Can online favourite Ocado make a comeback, or will its share price sink lower? March 28, 2023 Ocado’s share price fell nearly six per cent in afternoon trade as the “magic” of the online retailer’s venture with Marks and Spencer did little to buoy the confidence of investors In its start of year trading update Ocado revealed that retail revenue grew slightly by 3.4 per cent, although a 7.5 per cent decrease [...]
Ocado’s ‘M&S’ magic fails to impress as shares trade down despite revenue boost March 28, 2023 Ocado said it had helped by some “M&S magic” as the grocery chain’s joint venture with the high street stalwart boosted sales by 3.6 per cent in its first quarter. Shares in the online grocer were last trading down 1.97 per cent or 8.9p at 443.20p. The up market online grocer, which posted a pre-tax [...]
‘Tragedy’ if John Lewis ownership changes, says ex-boss March 26, 2023 John Lewis changing its ownership model would be “a tragedy”, a former top boss has said. Reports last week suggested the retailer is considering ending its fully staff-owned structure, with the partnership’s chairwoman, Sharon White, exploring plans to sell a minority stake. West Midlands mayor Andy Street, John Lewis managing director until 2016, acknowledged the [...]
Retail guru Mary Portas warns John Lewis it has ‘let go of the soul’ March 25, 2023 Mary Portas has sent an open letter to department store John Lewis warning that it has “let go of the soul”.