Year: 2019

Why shoppers want simple sustainability

The Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping spike is putting packaging into perspective for shoppers and creating demand for simple sustainability. Retailers should strive to deliver quick and clear eco messages when it comes to packaging. Going green  Sustainability has repeatedly hit the headlines again this year and we can…

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Mike Ashley warns of more House of Fraser closures

Despite experiencing the first “green shoots of recovery” further House of Fraser store closures are to be expected, Mike Ashley has warned. Commenting on the company’s latest half-year results, Ashley said Sports Direct is doing “as much as we can” to save as many jobs and stores as possible however…

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Ted Baker appoints ex-Sports Direct CFO as non-executive director

Ted Baker has appointed Jon Kempster as an independent non-executive director effective immediately. Kempster has previously held board positions at Sports Direct, where he served as chief financial officer. He has also held senior positions at Delta, Fii Group, Linden and Low and Bonar. Kempster also held the position as…

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Footfall slows after Black Friday boost

Footfall across UK retail destinations dropped by 0.9% post Black Friday, according to the latest retail figures from Springboard. In the week between 8 December and 14 December, footfall faced an annual decline of 5%, in line with the “lull” in trading that Springboard anticipated for the period. These latest…

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The latest business data is bad news, but the reasons given spell a good omen

This morning there was some bad news for business, but which definitely comes with a silver lining. So, the bad news first: the ‘Flash UK Composite Output Index’ from data firm, Markit, which tracks private sector business activity, found that it shrunk during the month of December. It has dropped…

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Sports Direct profits soar in half-year results

Shares in Sports Direct jumped more than 16% to 418p in early trading today, after the retailer announced a 160% increase in profits to £193.4m in its half-year financial report. The sports fashion retailer said the profit growth was largely due to “improved” underlying EBITDA, which increased by 21.8% to…

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Studio profits slump amid PPI claims

Online retailer Studio has recorded a ‘flat’ revenue of £228.1m in its half-year results ended 27 September.  Whilst adjusted profit before tax rose by 12% to £13m, profit from continuing operations plunged by 83% to £2.6m.  PPI claims of £7.9m impacted its profits from continuing operations, which were reported at…

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The Hut Group completes €1bn capital raising

The Hut Group has announced a €1bn (£830m) raise in capital in order to deliver a “step- change” to its balance sheet ahead of “anticipated macro-economic” and “political changes arising from the general election and Brexit”. The health and beauty platform has revealed BlackRock, a long term investor in The…

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The election is over – time for the Tories to deliver for small businesses

It now looks as though political stasis and all the damage that does to business will be lifted in 2020. Boris Johnson’s victory in the election is the Tories’ strongest since the Thatcher era, and gives him great scope to implement bold policies. At this juncture it’s worth taking a…

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Record numbers hit local high streets for Small Business Saturday

A record number of attendees showed their support for the UK’s seventh annual Small Business Saturday last weekend (7 December 2019). 17.6m customers shopped on their local high streets to show support for the 5.8 million small and independent businesses across the UK. It was estimated that £800m was spent…

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