Harrods hails rise in profit as iconic London store recovers from pandemic lull August 15, 2023 Harrods, the world famous department store in Knightsbridge, recorded a profit for the year ending January 2023, as the iconic London shop fully rebounded from the pandemic lull. Luxury shoppers keen to blow their cash in the capital helped hike operating profits at Harrods to £202.7m up from a weak £71.4m the prior year. The [...]
We were never going to have a great British bonfire of the tax system after Brexit August 15, 2023 We have neglected to reintroduce VAT-free shopping for foreign tourists, doubtless to squeals of delight from shopkeepers in Milan or Paris.
London losing out due to ‘tourist tax’ as US and Gulf visitors opt for Paris and Milan instead August 14, 2023 London is losing out on wealthy foreign visitors splashing their cash in Oxford Street due to the so-called ‘tourist tax’, amid renewed calls to scrap it and make the capital more competitive. The removal of VAT free shopping for international tourists continues to hurt London retailers, with visitors from the US and the Gulf cutting [...]
Watches of Switzerland: Tourist tax ‘biggest single frustration’ for UK retailers August 10, 2023 The government’s decision to scrap VAT-free shopping for tourists is continuing to hold UK retailers back, Watches of Switzerland has warned. Chief executive of the FTSE 250 luxury watch seller Brian Duffy told City A.M. it was “probably the biggest single frustration” for the British retail sector. “I was in Italy this weekend and the [...]
Faberge boss eggs on UK to bring back tax-free shopping to lure back wealthy tourists August 3, 2023 The boss of Faberge has joined calls for the UK to scrap the so-called ‘tourist tax’, which a new study has claimed is costing the UK over £10bn a year. Faberge chief Anthony Lindsay has urged for the return of tax-free shopping after a recent study by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) [...]
It is time Britain rid itself of its entrenched tall poppy syndrome August 3, 2023 Britain has a tendency to chop down the tallest of our poppies, from growing tech businesses to promising young footballers. Some try to do that with one of our more appealing recent success stories: English wine.One recent article elsewhere said the red tasted like vimto and the good stuff was too expensive; buy French, seemed [...]
Loss of tax-free shopping costing the UK £4.1bn, say London bosses July 26, 2023 Scrapping the tourist tax could generate £4.1bn annually for the UK economy, new research suggests, as a cluster of prominent business owners call for the government to reinstate VAT shopping for international tourists. Rishi Sunak scrapped the tax which saw international shoppers able to claim 20 per cent back with their purchases. It was largely [...]
The Notebook: Neil Clifford on dyslexia, profit with purpose and the greatest American asset July 24, 2023 Where interesting people say interesting things. Today, it’s Neil Clifford, chief executive of London luxury brand Kurt Geiger Profit with purpose is keeping us on the right track I left school in 1983 with a single qualification to my name: an O-level in art. I was dyslexic, but I didn’t find that out until years [...]
The tourist tax is hurting Britain, no matter what Rishi Sunak says July 7, 2023 Tourists pay an extra 20 per cent for shopping in London than in Paris or Milan.
Legoland owner Merlin surges back to profit thanks to tourism and staycations June 30, 2023 The return of tourists and families enjoying staycations has propelled sales and earnings for the owner of Legoland and Thorpe Park. Merlin Entertainments, which is one of the world’s biggest operators with more than 140 attractions, theme parks and resorts, said it had millions more visitors last year. The multinational group saw its revenues surge [...]