Sale rates soar for online retailer ASOS July 15, 2021 Online fashion giant ASOS saw sales continue to skyrocket despite physical competitors re-opening, per the firm’s latest market update. UK sales increased 60 per cent for the retailer in the four months to the end of June, with active customers growing by a further 1.2m. Chief executive officer Nick Beighton said, “ASOS has delivered another [...]
Could coffee-infused wine be the ideal post-Covid date fuel? July 14, 2021 If you were asked in a pub quiz what the UK’s favourite supermarket wine is, you might guess Hardy’s, Blossom Hill, Yellowtail, Barefoot or Casillero del Diablo. You probably wouldn’t think of an Australian red that commemorates people who committed serious crimes such as impersonating an Egyptian, stealing a shroud from a grave, counterfeiting copper [...]
Why more people are seeking residency abroad post-Covid July 14, 2021 It’s hard to take much in the way of positivity from the past 15 months or so, yet the circumstances thrust upon us have changed behaviours – or at least restrictions have accelerated such change. Amongst these is a compelling increase in the number of individuals seeking residency or citizenship in non-native countries. Yes, this [...]
Loki Episode 6 review – thrilling conclusion to Marvel series July 14, 2021 *** WARNING: this contains spoilers for all episodes of Loki on Disney+ *** It’s the finale of Loki, the most mysterious and captivating of Disney+’s MCU shows. Last week saw a lot of running around, meeting new characters, and revelations about the TVA. For the final episode there are fewer set pieces, but an awful [...]
Liquid Diamond: The only wine celebrating National Emoji Day July 14, 2021 This Saturday 17 July is National Emoji Day – a holiday that celebrates and validates our obsession with the graphic icons invented by Japanese designer Shigetaka Kurita in 1999. This may seem entirely unrelated to the world of oenology, but at least one viticulturist is blending smiley faces, love hearts and thumbs ups with their [...]
Prince Charles warns small family farms must survive for an environmentally friendly future July 14, 2021 The Prince of Wales has called for small family-run firms to be at the heart of attempts to go green. In an essay for BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, the heir to the throne warned letting family-run farms go to the wall would break “the backbone of Britain’s rural communities,” and said the “heart will [...]
The only way is gin: The Essex firms making world-beating booze July 13, 2021 Essex is establishing a name for itself. Not for Kevin and Sharons but wines and gin. Its legion of winegrowers and distillers have now been joined by Nikki Mendes from Leigh-on-Sea who has founded The Only Way Is Gin. “I set out to create a gin that shouts out proudly about where it’s from: Chelmsford!” [...]
Keep it in the family: 11 siblings behind two boozy powerhouses July 13, 2021 Brewing and distilling have for centuries been family pursuits, but the McAvoy family have taken that idea to almost absurdist lengths. Launched in 2017, the Sis4ers Distillery is run by sisters, Kerry Collins, Hayley Robinson, Kate Haslam and Lucy McAvoy, themselves the siblings of the brothers behind the Seven Bro7hers Brewing Co, based on the [...]
Full circle: driving Mazda’s rotary-engined sports cars July 13, 2021 We experience five of Mazda’s most exciting rotary-engined road cars, from a classic 1969 Cosmo to the modern RX-8.
The future of instant coffee looks a little brighter thanks to Little’s July 12, 2021 The coffee pod market now supplies 96 million cups a day to caffeine fiends across the globe. But it’s also coming under increasing scrutiny for its wasteful packaging, which sends many tonnes of plastic to the landfill. Devon’s Will Little might just have a solution for those time-poor coffee drinkers: “I asked myself ‘Why don’t [...]