Mulberry rejects ‘untenable’ second offer from Mike Ashley’s Frasers October 22, 2024 The board of Mulberry has unanimously rejected the second bid from retail giant Frasers as “untenable”. Frasers launched its first bid on 1 October for £83m, which was subsequently rejected as too low by Mulberry, and its second of £111m on 11 October. Mulberry reiterated its statement from the first time it rejected Frasers’ bid: [...]
Halfords: Customers more cautious on Autumn budget fears October 22, 2024 Uncertainty around the Autumn budget is holding back consumer confidence, Halfords warned today. This morning the retailer said group like-for-like sales ticked down by 0.1 per cent in the 26 weeks to 27 September, on strong prior-year comparatives of 8.3 per cent growth plus a wet spring. The company is on track to deliver £30m [...]
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group backs N Brown takeover amid Mulberry pursuit October 18, 2024 Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has backed the £191m proposed takeover of JD Williams-owner N Brown and announced the sale of its 20 per cent stake in the company for £38m. The retail empire, which includes Sports Direct and House of Fraser, holds nearly 95,000,000 shares in the Manchester business and will sell them for 40p [...]
British American Tobacco inches closer to settlement of multi-billion dollar lawsuit in Canada October 18, 2024 A subsidiary of London-listed British American Tobacco (BAT) revealed that it's nearing a "potential" settlement in a multi-billion dollar lawsuit in Canada
Boohoo shares drop as firm mulls break up and boss heads for the exit October 18, 2024 Boohoo has revealed that its CEO is stepping down after five years, kick-starting a search for the fast fashion's next chief executive
TJ Maxx sales pass £4bn to hit new record October 17, 2024 Sales at the UK arm of TJ Maxx passed the £4bn mark during its latest financial year to hit a new record, it has been revealed. Newly-filed accounts with Companies House show the firm’s turnover increased from £3.88bn to £4.02bn in the 12 months to 3 February, 2024. Despite the rise in sales, TJ Maxx’s [...]
N Brown slams AIM as company set for takeover October 17, 2024 Retailer N Brown is set to be acquired by a company owned by its non-executive director, Joshua Alliance, as it looks to move off AIM. Its share price rose more than 40 per cent after the announcement. N Brown, which owns the brands JD Williams and Simply Be, has said the reduced appetite for UK [...]
John Lewis partners with Zopa to boost personal loan offering October 16, 2024 John Lewis has partnered with an online back to offer personal loans of up to £35,000 to its 23m customers. The department store chain‘s financial services arm is working with Zopa Bank to provide its customers with more finance options. The bank will be embedded into the John Lewis Money website with a personalised loan [...]
Cotswold Outdoor has now lost over £100m since it last made a profit October 16, 2024 The company behind Cotswold Outdoor has now lost more than £100m since it last made a pre-tax profit almost ten years ago, it has been revealed. The Wiltshire-headquartered retailer, whose brands also include Runners Need as well as Snow and Rock, has reported a pre-tax loss of £7.3m for 2023, after also making a loss [...]
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group buys stake in Hudson Malta to boost global expansion October 15, 2024 Frasers Group, the empire controlled by Mike Ashley, is to expand into Malta and Africa after acquiring a “significant non-controlling” stake in a retail and distribution business. The London-listed group has invested in Hudson Malta, which has operations across 36 African countries. The owner of Sports Direct and House of Fraser said the deal reflects [...]
