Activewear brand TALA raises £4.2m as it woos shoppers fed up with fast fashion February 2, 2022 Gen Z-orientated sustainable activewear brand TALA has raised £4.2m in funding with Active Partners and Venrex. Founded by social media influencer Grave Beverley, TALA aims to offer consciousness gym goers an affordable alternative to fast fashion rivals. Participants in the oversubscribed round included venture capital trust Pembroke VCT, as well as angel investors including Deciem [...]
Shop price inflation highest in a decade as Brits feel cost of living squeeze February 2, 2022 Retail inflation has soared in the past month, with Brits eyeing discount retailers for cheaper prices as the country faces a cost of living squeeze. Shop price annual inflation surged to 1.5 per cent in January, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Nielsen IQ shop price index. This was up from 0.8 per [...]
Westminster Council: West End to receive millions in recovery support fund February 1, 2022 Westminster Council is to inject millions of pounds into reviving the borough’s hospitality industry. Within a £190m investment to support the area, the council has announced a dedicated £1m to recruit waiters, baristas and bar staff, it said yesterday. Some £150m is to be used to redesign the Oxford Street district and make Strand Aldwych [...]
Pret sandwich sales in the Square Mile surge as City workers return to desks February 1, 2022 Two in three City workers were back at their desks last week, as Pret A Manger coffee and sandwich sales edge closer to pre-pandemic levels. According to the latest data from Bloomberg’s Pret Index, the coffee chain’s sales transactions hit 68 per cent of pre-Covid levels in the City and Canary Wharf. This marks the [...]
Mobile operator Three UK hikes staff wages considerably as it continues recruitment drive February 1, 2022 Mobile phone operator Three UK is planning to hike staff wages up to 12.6 per cent, as the country faces soaring prices for utilities and groceries. Some 2,500 retail staff will receive new minimum hourly rates set at £10.13 nationwide and £11.40 in London, excluding bonuses, the internet service provider said The pay hikes exceed [...]
Tesco to axe 1,600 jobs in fresh restructuring plans as union enters consultation talks February 1, 2022 Around 1,600 roles could be axed by Tesco as the supermarket has announced further cuts. The supermarket is planning to restructure its night stock replenishing operations, as well as the closure of some in-store counter services and the Jack’s store format. Tesco said it was moving overnight re-stocking to the daytime in 36 large stores [...]
Households face extra £180 a year on average grocery bill February 1, 2022 Households are facing an extra £180 to their annual grocery bill after inflation has seen prices surge in recent months. The latest four-week grocery price inflation stands at 3.8 per cent, a 0.3 percentage point rise from December, according to the latest market data from Kantar. Take-home supermarket sales dropped 3.8 per cent over the [...]
UK’s worst hotel chains are… Britannia and Mercure February 1, 2022 Poorly rated for cleanliness, bathrooms and value for money, Britannia and Mercure have been ranked the UK’s worst hotel chains. It is the ninth consecutive year that Britannia has come bottom of the pile in the annual survey by consumer group Which?. The chain has 61 hotels across Britain, including Liverpool’s Adelphi Hotel and Scarborough’s [...]
Irn-Bru owner AG Barr increases prices as company battles rising inflation February 1, 2022 The company behind Irn-Bru has revealed that prices for its drinks have gone up due to inflation. Bosses at AG Barr said they have seen rising costs for raw materials, including packaging and energy bills, leading to cost-cutting measures, adding that they have “adjusted our pricing with customers where appropriate”. The comments came as the [...]
Omicron and supply chain issues plague Joules’s profitability February 1, 2022 The rise of Omicron and ongoing supply chain issues have plagued the profitability of British lifestyle group Joules. In the six month ended 28 November, Joules’s financial results were in line with previous guidance, as profits went down 29.7 per cent on 2020 levels to £2.6m, while revenues hiked to £127.9m. But in the last [...]