UK supermarket sales soar to record-breaking £11.7bn in December January 5, 2021 UK supermarkets recorded their busiest ever month in December as grocery sales soared to £11.7bn amid bar and restaurant closures during the festive period. Morrisons was the strongest performer of the Big Four UK supermarkets, with sales jumping 13.1 per cent, followed by Tesco, which toasted a 11.1 per cent rise in sales. Sainsbury’s recorded [...]
Morrisons posts sales growth but warns of higher Covid-19 costs January 5, 2021 Morrisons has reported a rise in sales during the second half of the year, but warned that tougher new Covid-19 lockdown measures would increase its costs. The supermarket chain posted an 8.1 per cent rise in like-for-like sales excluding fuel in the 22 weeks to the 3 January. Including fuel, like-for-like sales rose 1.9 per [...]
Jamie Oliver takes payday hit as restaurant collapse eats into profits January 3, 2021 Jamie Oliver has suffered a decline in profit from his business ventures as the collapse of his restaurant chain continues to take its toll. Pre-tax profits at the celebrity chef’s group of companies dropped to £7.1m in 2019, down nine per cent on the previous year. Turnover dropped just over five per cent to £38.8m, [...]
Loungewear sales up 1,303 per cent as lockdown changes consumer habits December 30, 2020 Loungewear and leggings sales spiked by 1,303 per cent in 2020 according to new data from John Lewis. The department store’s annual look at consumer habits shows lockdown’s impact on customers’ baskets. As well as sitting room fashion, sales of chess sets (a 121 per cent increase on 2019), TVs (45 per cent) and paint [...]
The Priory goes Private (Equity): UK rehab clinics sold in £1bn deal December 30, 2020 The Priory Group, operators of the UK’s best-known rehab clinics, has been bought by private equity outfit Waterland. Acadia, the American owners of the Group, confirmed the offload before US markets opened. Read more: 2021 set to see an M&A boom It will merge the two businesses and create what Waterland say will be “Europe’s [...]
How you can support your favourite bars and restaurants into 2021 December 30, 2020 January is generally a slow month for the hospitality sector as it is, largely due to those who have overindulged during the festive period wishing to take a break and partaking in the equally dreadful ‘Dry January’ or ‘Veganuary’. However, owing to ever-shifting and ever-stricter lockdown restrictions, we may not have had ample opportunity to [...]
Wonks expect retail to see a brighter 2021 December 30, 2020 Retailers can expect to see sales growth of as much as 3 per cent in 2021, according to a new expert report. Pent-up savings and demand, more confident consumers and a successful vaccine rollout will all bring a boost, says the KPMG/Ipsos Retail Think Tank. Read more: Where did it all go wrong for Topshop? [...]
The Hut Group ramps up growth plans with £300m takeover spree December 29, 2020 The Hut Group has forked out more than £300m to acquire three companies as the online fashion and beauty retailer pursues an aggressive growth plan after its stock market float. The Manchester-based ecommerce group today said it will snap up skincare brand Dermstore from US retail giant Target for $350m (£259m). It has also acquired [...]
Wine drinkers toast Brexit deal as French clarets, German rieslings and UK sparkling wine escape regulatory burdens December 27, 2020 Wine drinkers will have reason to celebrate at least one aspect of the Brexit deal, industry insiders say, after it emerged it will cut red tape for wine exporters and importers. Insiders had feared that the UK’s departure would entail an additional, costly regulation – in the form of the VI-1 certificate – after the [...]
