Shoppers opted for premium products this Christmas as grocery inflation hit 3.5 per cent January 5, 2022 Grocery sales hit £11.7bn over the Christmas period, as shoppers were keen to make the most of the festive period after Covid restrictions hampered celebrations last year. Shoppers spent record amounts on supermarkets’ premium own brand products, with £627m spent on pricier items over the four weeks to 26 December. This was an increase of [...]
Waitrose makes headway into home delivery through Mindful Chef partnership December 29, 2021 Supermarket Waitrose has partnered up with Mindful Chef, a British company that delivers recipes and ingredients to people’s homes, in a bid to capitalise on the trend propelled during the pandemic. The news comes as the online food delivery industry has become increasingly popular during the pandemic, and just weeks after Asda announced its own [...]
Best of 2021: Why UK airlines are at odds with Heathrow December 27, 2021 The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) managed to upset both airlines and Heathrow on 16 December when it confirmed the interim price cap which will be implemented at the London hub from 1 January. From the current £19.60 the charges will go up to £29.50 in 2020 prices, amounting to £30.19 per passenger because of the [...]
Just Eat enters grocery delivery market race with Asda deal December 17, 2021 Just Eat has waded into the escalating market battle over rapid grocery deliveries, unveiling a deal with supermarket chain Asda.
Wine Wednesday: Buy Burgundy – and buy it now! December 1, 2021 Burgundy has established a world-wide reputation for excellent quality, premium wines, despite the term being created as an Anglicised word for marketing purposes. In France the region and wines are ‘Bourgogne’ and there is a push among winemakers in the area to reclaim this original name. Whether you call it Burgundy or Bourgogne, however, if [...]
Letters: Keeping an eye on the prize November 25, 2021 [Re: FCA watchdog calls in Bitcoin experts to combat crime, Nov 22] The relative anonymity of cryptocurrencies is naturally an attractive destination for organised criminals trying to hide their illicit wealth. With the use of crypto increasing, it is no surprise to see the FCA ramping up efforts to protect the wider industry from illicit [...]
Aviation recovery on its way, BA’s owner assures November 23, 2021 Luis Gallego, chief executive of British Airways’ (BA) owner IAG, is convinced aviation recovery will get back to pre-pandemic levels by 2023, as a result of the easing of air travel restrictions and the opening of transatlantic travel. Speaking yesterday at the Airlines UK conference in Westminster, Gallego revealed that “transatlantic bookings have reached almost [...]
British Airways threatens to cut Heathrow flights if recovery-undermining airport charges don’t come down November 22, 2021 The boss of British Airways’ parent company warned today that the airline will cut Heathrow flights if proposed increases in charges are implemented, IAG chief executive Luis Gallego said the west London airport’s fees are already among the highest in the world and are becoming “more and more expensive”. In October, the Civil Aviation Authority [...]
Sheepish: Waitrose to work with lamb sector after carbon footprint row November 18, 2021 The National Sheep Association (NSA) and Waitrose have agreed to work together to raise awareness of UK sheep farming’s “positive impact on the environment,” following a row. The NSA slammed supermarkets for bleating “misinformation” about lamb’s carbon footprint this week. It criticised Waitrose for recommending customers could slash their impact on the planet by eating [...]
Wine diary: My lunch with the Tom Selleck of the wine world November 17, 2021 Celebration was in the air at the first Winemakers Lunch in over two years. Hosted by Top Selection director Akos Forczek, it took place at the oenophile haven that is 67 Pall Mall’s private dining room. The guest of honour was Peter Mondavi Jr who, baring some resemblance to an even-more-twinkly Tom Selleck, took us [...]