New Look defies warm weather as profits soar November 11, 2014 New Look has defied the warm weather that has dampened other retailers' sales, with the fast fashion business reporting profits up a whopping 89.1 per cent for the first half of the year. Profits before tax stood at £26.1m for the six months to September 27 – up on £13.8m the same period last [...]
Asos CEO Nick Robertson: Bruised and burnt but fighting back October 21, 2014 What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, Nick Robertson declared yesterday. The Asos chief executive has had a tough year, riddled with profit warnings, a fire at its main warehouse, and slowing international sales that have left the firm’s shares badly bruised. Until this year, Asos’ shares have enjoyed a meteoric rise, thanks to [...]
Asos share price leaps as sales climb 27 per cent following tough year for online retailer October 21, 2014 Shares in online retailer Asos have leaped almost 20 per cent this morning, after the beleaguered online retailer reported a 27 per cent rise in sales. Although results posted today showed pre-tax profits fell 14 per cent to £46.9m in the year to the end of August, from £54.7m during the same period last year, [...]
George Osborne braced for bad news on deficit reduction – London Report October 19, 2014 Public finance figures due out tomorrow are likely to be a blow to chancellor George Osborne, with tax receipts lowered by very low earnings growth. Economists predict that Osborne is now unlikely to meet fiscal targets for the year, despite improved economic activity, stronger house prices and an improved labour market. Howard Archer, of IHS [...]
Boohoo claims credit for online market success October 14, 2014 BOOHOO co-chief executive Carol Kane said the online fashion retailer’s success and recent IPO had acted as a wake-up call for other high street stores to improve their own online businesses, as it posted a jump in sales yesterday. Boohoo made its successful debut on Aim in March, with a market value of £560m, just [...]
Fears over Ebola contagion puts airlines in a spin – London Report October 7, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index fell back yesterday, with travel and leisure companies hit by concerns that the spread of Ebola outside Africa could hurt air travel and the tourism business. Sentiment was also hit by a set of poor data, including an unexpected four per cent month-on-month drop in German industrial production in August. Analysts had [...]
City says Asos a takover target October 6, 2014 ASOS shares soared nearly 15 per cent yesterday after analysts at UBS said the troubled online retailer was “ripe” for a takeover, with rival Amazon the most likely suitor. The company, which has issued three profit warnings in the past seven months, has been subject to previous takeover speculation, with eBay and Amazon cited as [...]
Zalando share price fizzles after explosive opening in Frankfurt stock debut October 1, 2014 Shares in Europe’s largest online fashion retailer Zalando gave up most of their opening gains on the Frankfurt stock market debut yesterday. After pricing at €21.50 shares soared as high as €24.10, but by the close of trading had retreated to just €21.569. Berlin-based Zalando started out selling shoes in Germany in 2008, inspired by [...]
Zalando shares priced at €21.50 valuing German online retailer at €4.9bn September 29, 2014 German online retailer Zalando has announced the pricing of its shares at the upper end of expectations- €21.50 (£16.79)- kicking off a bumper week for the German technology market. The six-year-old startup will make its market debut on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on 1 October, floating 11.3 per cent of the business to raise €605m [...]
Marketing to millennials: Is Generation Y really all that different? September 21, 2014 Talking to advertising and media executives these days, you’d be forgiven for thinking that there’s an alien group lurking among UK consumers. Millennials, we are told, are different. Born between 1980 and 1995, they split their summers between south-east Asia and Bestival, often sporting torn jeans, face paint and/or a pair of Google Glasses. When [...]