January sales fail to impress shoppers as London footfall disappoints February 2, 2024 January was another disappointing month for London retailers as shoppers steered clear of the high street. A new report by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) showed footfall across the capital declined by 1.7 per cent at the start of the month. This has widened from a fall of 1.4 per cent recorded in December. With [...]
Hunt should listen to business leaders on the costly tourist tax January 30, 2024 Can a relatively small change to VAT laws really cost the country as much as West End retailers suggest? To the many of us who don’t choose our next weekend break on the back of a tax-break on our next Gucci handbag, the idea seems ludicrous. But there is a reason so many retailers and [...]
Tourist Tax: M&S and Primark urge Jeremy Hunt to ‘think again’ as £11.1bn wiped of GDP January 30, 2024 Business leaders are piling fresh pressure on the government to scrap its controversial tourist tax as data shows it is eating away at UK GDP and banishing international visitors.
The Notebook: Hunt must scrap the tourist tax if the UK wants to stay competitive January 29, 2024 Where the City’s movers and shakers have their say. Today, James Chapman, Director of Soho Communications, takes the Notebook pen. The tourist tax is causing the UK to fall behind European rivals Ahead of his Spring Budget, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is casting around for measures to promote that most elusive of things, economic growth. It’s [...]
What could we see from Labour’s election manifesto? January 25, 2024 Labour leader Keir Starmer has set a deadline for draft manifesto submissions - so what could the party offer the UK at a general election?
Central London Alliance calls for government to cut VAT for hospitality, tourism and leisure January 23, 2024 Central London Alliance (CLA) calls on the Government to address the UK’s lack of competitiveness on the global tourism market, beginning with a cut to VAT for the hospitality, tourism and leisure industries. Figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show that visits to the UK increased 112 per cent year-on-year, generating £30 billion [...]
London Oxford Street spend slips as pressure mounts to scrap tourist tax January 23, 2024 Bosses behind Oxford Street are piling fresh pressure on the government to scrap the tourist tax after visitors failed to splash the cash over the Christmas period. Dee Corsi, who heads up the New West End Company, said footfall grew three per cent over the holiday season but customers kept their purses shut, with spending [...]
Watches of Switzerland: Shares crater 30 per cent as demand for luxury flattens January 18, 2024 Shares in Watches of Switzerland have fallen by over 30 per cent after the luxury watch maker warned on its earnings for the year. . In an update, the Rolex seller said that it was bruised by “challenging macroeconomic conditions” over Christmas which impacted consumer spending in luxury retail. It now expects revenue for the [...]
London’s tourist tax: Struggling luxury brands LVMH, Mulberry and Burberry have other problems, too January 17, 2024 Mulberry has fallen out of fashion with investors as shares slumped over four per cent this morning, with the luxury retailers expressing growing concerns about flattening sales and the tourist tax. The British fashion house, best known for its leather handbags, has had around £3bn wiped off its market value in the last five months [...]
Mulberry blames tourist tax and slowdown in luxury demand for falling sales January 17, 2024 British fashion house Mulberry has blamed a slowdown in demand for luxury spending for a nine per cent decline in sales over the golden quarter.