West End: Tourist tax ‘disadvantage’ costs retailers hundreds of millions September 16, 2024 Retail business in London missed out on a projected £220m in the first half of 2024 due to the ongoing effect of the so-called tourist tax, despite continued growth in international visitor numbers. The number of international visitors to London was three per cent above pre-pandemic levels, but spending in the West End fell nearly [...]
Kurt Geiger boss joins list of retailers slamming the end of tax-free shopping September 2, 2024 Kurt Geiger’s boss has said the UK is shooting itself in the foot by not bringing back tax-free shopping for international visitors. Kurt Geiger’s chief executive, Neil Clifford, told The Times that the end of VAT-free shopping has had a “massively negative effect” on Britain”. “International tourists, whether it be Middle Eastern or American travellers, [...]
Burberry’s fall out of the FTSE 100 is about much more than a challenging market August 30, 2024 Burberry is set to drop out of the FTSE 100 in its quarterly reshuffle, which will be based on market caps as of 2 September. It’s an unfortunate if not surprising turn of events for the UK’s only luxury fashion brand, which has seen its share price drop nearly 75 per cent in the last [...]
Tourists’ return boosts sales at Italian luxury fashion house Zegna August 21, 2024 Sales at the UK arm of Italian luxury fashion house Zegna jumped by almost a quarter in 2023 thanks to the return of tourists following the Covid-19 pandemic. The division has reported a turnover of £30.7m for the 12 months, up from the £24.8m it posted for 2022. Newly-filed accounts with Companies House also show [...]
Selfridges’ new chief faces an uphill battle August 13, 2024 Selfridges’ new CEO, André Maeder, has his work cut out for him. The company has managed to survive the gruelling pandemic years – largely by cutting jobs and moving online – a tough cost-of-living crisis and an acquisition in 2022. But seasoned retailer Maeder, who was officially announced two weeks ago and starts in November, [...]
Safestay: Hostel group continues European expansion with new Budapest property August 13, 2024 Hostel group Safestay has acquired a new property in Budapest as part of its continued expansion into mainland Europe. The London-listed company, which is headquartered in the city, said the five-storey site, located near the Danube River and Budapest’s shopping district, will allow it to add an additional 150 beds to its network, bringing its [...]
Loveholidays: How CEO Donat Rétif tripled profit by ‘democratising’ travel August 2, 2024 Donat Rétif has only been the CEO of Loveholidays since 2019, but under his leadership the vacation marketplace has experienced explosive growth across all major metrics, doubling its revenue, tripling its pre-tax profit and quadrupling its workforce.
Selfridges chief quits in surprise move for struggling retailer July 30, 2024 The chief executive of Selfridges has unexpectedly quit, having been in the job since the start of the pandemic. Andrew Keith, who joined in 2020, will leave the company that owns the famous flagship London store to pursue new ventures in Autumn this year. He has been operational as CEO for three-and-a-half years, having been [...]
Diriyah: An Innovative Smart City Reshaping The World Of Work July 21, 2024 Alfie Gibbs, Chief Business Development Officer at Diriyah Company, tells Inside Saudi why Diriyah will be a destination like no other for businesses seeking to thrive.
How did Burberry get stuck in the trenches? July 13, 2024 Burberry has struggled to compete with its luxuary peers over the past couple of years.