Hotel Chocolat

Stradivarius to open first Glasgow store at Silverburn

Spanish fashion brand Stradivarius will open its first Glasgow store at Silverburn, joining a line-up of Inditex-owned retailers at the shopping centre. The brand, part of international fashion group Inditex, will occupy a 6,462 sq ft unit. Its arrival will bring the number of Inditex stores at Silverburn to four,…

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Bershka and Pull&Bear to open at Glasgow’s Silverburn

Bershka and Pull&Bear have selected retail and leisure destination Silverburn to open their first Glasgow stores. Bershka will take the current Zara space, which will open a much larger store in the former Debenhams unit, as announced last year. Pull&Bear is taking the former Topshop store, between Mango and River…

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Today’s news in brief-27/1/25

WH Smith is exploring the sale of its high street arm to focus on its global Travel business, which now contributes 75% of revenue and 85% of profits. The potential sale, managed by bankers at Greenhill, comes amid a 9% decline in high street profits to £39m, although group revenue…

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Hotel Chocolat to open 25 stores this year amid record Xmas sales

Hotel Chocolat posted record UK Christmas sales for the 4 weeks to 29 December and has revealed it is set to open 25 new stores in the UK this year. The premium chocolatier saw sales rise 10.4% year-on-year, with 21 and 23 December being the busiest shopping days online and…

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Silverburn shopping destination reaches ‘record-breaking’ footfall in 2024

Silverburn, Glasgow’s leading retail and leisure destination, has announced a “record-breaking year”, welcoming 15.2 million visitors in 2024, marking a 2.4% increase in foot traffic in December alone. This growth comes as Silverburn confirms the signing of several new retail and leisure brands, set to occupy over 100,000 sq. ft.…

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Deal activity in F&B recovered in 2023, Grant Thornton finds

Deal activity in the food and beverage sector rebounded last year compared with 2022, when dealmaking was put on pause due to the emerging cost of living crisis, according to new research from Grant Thornton.  According to the firm’s research, there was an uptick in M&A activity across the sector…

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Today’s news in brief-16/11/23

Mars has acquired Hotel Chocolat in a £534m deal, offering a 168% premium on the share price. Mars sees cultural alignment between the two companies, sharing values of quality, sustainability, and purpose. Hotel Chocolat’s directors deemed the deal “fair and reasonable.” Mars, with its international footprint and global supply chain,…

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Mars acquires Hotel Chocolat for £534m

Mars has agreed to a takeover of Hotel Chocolat in a deal which values the business at £534m. The cash offer from Mars represented a 168% premium on its share price which closed at 139p on Wednesday (15 November). The directors of Hotel Chocolat stated that they believed the terms…

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Today’s news in brief-12/10/23

Next is reportedly in the final stages of acquiring clothing brand FatFace in a deal worth over £100 million. This move follows Next’s recent acquisitions, including a majority stake in Reiss, the brand name and assets of Cath Kidston, and the acquisition of Made.com. The group also has investments in…

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Hotel Chocolat revenues fall 10% in FY23

Hotel Chocolat has reported that revenue fell by 10% to £204.5m in the year ended 2 July, due to lower sales online and internationally.  UK revenues also dropped by 8% year-on-year, which the group maintains is in line with market expectations.  That said, the group did experience an 8% year-on-year…

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