Aldi bags record UK sales growth though profit dips as it plans more UK expansion September 25, 2017 German budget grocer Aldi’s quest for UK domination continues as its sales growth picked up in the UK, though profits dipped in its full-year results due to “continued investment in prices and infrastructure”. The supermarket onslaught continues however, as the firm outlined plans for 70 new supermarkets for 2018 amid its efforts to hit 1,000 [...]
Editor’s Notes: End of the road as Bell Pottinger shuts up shop, Jeremy Corbyn’s Venezuela shame and Old McDonnell had a strike September 8, 2017 For staff at Bell Pottinger the weekend probably can’t come soon enough. The disgraced PR firm’s fall from grace and into likely administration has been breathtakingly fast. For the 200 UK employees, the vast majority of whom had nothing to do with the scandal that sank the company, an uncertain few weeks await them. Some [...]
Bell Pottinger faces client exodus: Top firms seek to distance themselves from disgraced PR firm | City A.M. September 5, 2017 Bell Pottinger is facing an exodus of clients as companies seek to distance themselves from the disgraced PR firm. The iconic company, which was kicked out of the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) on Monday, is now scrambling to regroup. City A.M. understands Bell Pottinger wants to name a new boss this week, following [...]
Co-op’s the latest supermarket to drop the tampon tax, following Tesco, Waitrose and Morrisons August 28, 2017 Co-op has become the latest supermarket to take a stand on the so-called tampon tax by cutting out the additional cost for customers. It follows similar action taken by Tesco, Waitrose and Morrisons in the past few weeks. Read more: Tampon tax: Morrisons hops on bandwagon to absorb the cost The cost of tampons and [...]
UK IPO: Bakkavor – which supplies Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose meals – gears up for London float worth up to £2bn July 23, 2017 Bakkavor, supplier of supermarkets including Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury’s, is readying itself for a stock market float that could value it at up to £2bn. The pizza and ready meal supplier appointed Rothschild to examine its options in January, and has now brought in advisers from HSBC and Morgan Stanley to lead the IPO later [...]
Focus On Orpington: Developers are starting to show an interest in this well-connected town in Zone 6 June 16, 2017 When house-hunting in London, the sleepy town of Orpington may not be high up your list. But there are many reasons why it should be, not least because its house price growth is among the fastest in outer London. According to estate agent JLL’s London Residential Heat Map, house prices in the BR6 postcode grew [...]
John Lewis increases profits as it battles tough market conditions March 9, 2017 The John Lewis Partnership announced a profit rise today – but warned of a tough year ahead due to rising costs and structural changes in the retail industry. The figures For the year ending 28 January, the Partnership's profit before the bonus, tax and exceptional items, was up 21.2 per cent to £370.4m. This was [...]
John Lewis has slashed its staff bonus to six per cent March 9, 2017 The John Lewis Partnership has slashed its staff bonus in the face of an "uncertain market" in the year ahead. The bonus, one of the key perks for John Lewis employees (also known as partners), was cut to six per cent of salary, totalling £89.4m. Last year, the employees were given a 10 per cent bonus. In [...]
Turnaround plan looks set to pay off for Morrisons March 5, 2017 The turnaround at Morrisons supermarkets headed by CEO David Potts looks set to gather speed this week as the company reports its best annual results in six years. The chain is likely to report a 54 per cent rise in pre-tax earnings to £335m on Thursday, according to predictions by banking firm Jefferies. The firm [...]
John Lewis employee bonuses set to take a hit March 5, 2017 Employees of the John Lewis Partnership can expect their annual bonuses to shrink this year. Bonuses are unlikely to be higher than six or seven per cent of income when the company releases full-year results on Thursday, according to sources close to the situation. This is down from to a 10 per cent bonus last year. The [...]