Year: 2019

Watches of Switzerland reports 112% increase in profit before tax

Watches of Switzerland has reported a 112% increase in adjusted profit before tax since May 2019. The high-end retailer revealed that group revenues increased by 17.3% to £428.7m with a 10.3% increase in like for like sales growth driven by higher luxury watch sales. In the six months to 27…

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McColl’s earnings to fall short of expectations

Convenience retailer McColl’s has revealed that earnings are set to fall short of expectations amid “unseasonable weather and lower consumer confidence”.  In a full year trading update for the period ending 24 November 2019, total revenue was down by 1.9% for the year, which was a reflection of store divestments…

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The Lib Dems want to abolish business rates, but don’t hold your breath

Over the weekend the leader of the Lib Dems, Jo Swinson, visited Hertforshire to discuss her party’s approach to SMEs. The timing was important: it was Small Business Saturday, an idea imported from the United States, the purpose of which is to promote buying local, and to draw attention to…

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Ted Baker appoints Deloitte to probe £25m stock overstatement

Ted Baker has appointed ‘Big Four accountancy firm’ Deloitte to probe into its accounting blunder that revealed it had overstated the value of its stock by up to £25m. According to Sky News, the auditor will work alongside law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer on the inquiry. Earlier this month, the…

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Wet weather hits November footfall

Retail footfall in November dropped 3.4% year-on-year after “severe wet weather” deterred shoppers in the last two weeks of the month, according to the latest figures from Springboard. Springboard also revealed that footfall was likely affected by shoppers holding out for Black Friday discounts. Black Friday was deemed to have…

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Tesco considers sale of its Asian arm

Tesco is considering the sale of its Malaysian and Thai businesses, the supermarket giant has confirmed. The two businesses have an estimated worth of £6.8bn between them. Tesco released a statement saying that this consideration follows “inbound interest” of the businesses, yet potential buyers are yet to be named. The…

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Jessops appoints administrators, 500 jobs at risk

Camera retailer Jessops has appointed administrators to its property arm, reportedly placing around 500 jobs at risk.  According to The Guardian, the retailer’s main trading company Jessops Europe is not affected by the administration and its owner, Dragons Den’s Peter Jones, is thought to want to keep the business going.…

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Why shoppable social media means retailers must embrace returns

Growing social commerce This year marks 25 years since the first secure online transaction was completed, signalling the birth of online shopping and changing the face of retail. Ecommerce has come a long way since 1994, with increasingly sophisticated advertising and sales tools making online shopping more targeted and convenient.…

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CMA issues interim order to halt JD Sports’ Footasylum acquisition

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has issued an interim order against the proposed £90m takeover of Footasylum by JD Sports, halting any further talks between the two companies until the watchdog’s investigation has been completed. Following the announcement of the deal back in March, the CMA launched an investigation…

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Boohoo founders sell off £143m of stock

Boohoo founders, Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane, have announced the sale of 50 million shares in the fashion group, at a price of 285p with a total value of £142.5m. Following this placing, which was announced in a regulatory filing yesterday, the duo now possess just over 184 million shares…

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