Forget Dry January – now it’s time for Dry July July 7, 2025 Not content with one month of sobriety in the form of Dry January, I have been made aware Dry July is now a thing too. At least this time of year makes a little more sense to me. January is a bitter, joyless month where the comforts of a glass of good red wine by [...]
Build-to-rent: UK boom in purpose-built properties June 2, 2025 The number of build-to-rent completions in the last year has shot up in another sign the sector is here to stay in the UK. Completions of built to rent properties – which refers to purpose built, institutionally owned and professionally managed residential blocks of flats – have risen by 16 per cent year on year, [...]
John Lewis gets green light to build hundreds of homes in West Ealing May 28, 2025 Plans by the John Lewis Partnership (JLP) to redevelop Waitrose West Ealing have been given the go-ahead by Ealing Council after a successful appeal by the retail giant. The application, which has been in the planning system for nearly two years, is part of JLP’s long-term strategy to diversify its income streams via build-to-rent. The [...]
Cricketing star Ben Stokes takes stake in alcohol-free Cleanco May 18, 2025 Cricketing star Ben Stokes OBE has taken a stake in reality tv star Spencer Matthews’ alcohol-free spirits brand Cleanco. Stokes partnership with the firm comes as part of a $5m fundraising round for the brand as it hopes for its first year of cash-flow positivty. Cleanco is also gearing up for global expansion with ambitions [...]
Tesco and Waitrose back King’s challenge to tackle hunger issues May 18, 2025 Four UK supermarkets are launching a joint campaign to tackle hunger, following a challenge from the King. Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Waitrose will take part in the Let’s Make A Meal Of It campaign, which encourages customers to donate to charity FareShare either online or by rounding up their bills in store. The campaign is [...]
Libby’s Naked Wines Diary: How to celebrate Steak Day right April 24, 2025 Steak. Our nation loves it. So much so that Tesco reported searches for ‘Wagyu” have gone up 87 per cent since last year on tesco.com. With its prestige and price, when it comes to cuts of meat, this is essentially the Grand Cru of beef. Taking this as a call to action, Tesco has launched [...]
Welsh wine is no April Fools joke – and it’s delicious April 1, 2025 Firstly, I promise this isn’t an April Fool. Welsh wine is a real thing. Historically of course, they have always liked a drink. Welsh bards, poets and wordsmiths have dedicated their talent to the power and beauty of wine. As far back at the 6th century there are references to mead being drunk by warriors [...]
Greencore: M&S sandwich supplier roars ahead amid takeover battle April 1, 2025 Convenience food manufacturer Greencore told markets this morning that it expects profit to come in ahead of expectations for the second quarter, underpinned by “on-going operational and commercial excellence initiatives and a continued focus on cost control”, it said. Convenience food company Greencore supplies all major supermarkets in the UK, including M&S, with chilled prepared [...]
John Lewis scraps staff bonus again despite tripling profit March 13, 2025 The John Lewis Partnership has scrapped its staff bonus for the third year in a row despite a near-tripling in profit. The company, which owns both John Lewis and Waitrose, told markets this morning that profit before tax increased from £42m to £126m over the 52 weeks to 25 January. Overall sales rose three per [...]
Gary Neville signs deal with cult London coffee brand Grind March 10, 2025 Cult coffee brand Grind is to open its first base outside London after signing a deal with Gary Neville to take space at his landmark city centre development in Manchester. Grind has agreed to take over 3,000 sq ft at No.1 St Michael’s scheme which is being led by Neville’s Relentless Developments. Grind joins the [...]