Sage to sell payments arm to US Bancorp subsidiary November 18, 2019 UK software firm Sage Group is set to sell its payments arm Sage Pay for around £230m to Elavon, a payments firm and unit of US Bancorp. Read more: Sage kicks off sale of payments processing business Sage Pay is a major provider of payment services in both the UK and Ireland. Announcing the deal, [...]
John Lewis, Ikea, or Aldi — which 2019 Christmas advert is the winner? November 18, 2019 From clumsy dragons to evil sprouts, here’s our review of the festive adverts from some of the UK’s biggest retailers. M&S Food: This Is Not Just Food… This Is M&S Christmas Food The premise of this entire advert hinges on presenters Paddy McGuinness and Emma Willis, who swan around a Christmas market for 1.30 minutes as [...]
Zizzi owner Azzurri shrinks losses despite sector challenges November 18, 2019 Azzurri, the owner of casual dining restaurants Ask Italian and Zizzi, reported shrinking losses this year despite the challenges facing the sector in the UK. Azzurri reported a loss before tax of £16.3m in the 12 months to 30 June, compared to a loss of £23.4m last year, and said it remained confident despite “ongoing [...]
UK’s top restaurants swing to £93m loss November 18, 2019 The UK’s top 100 restaurants swung to a loss this year as they struggled to stay afloat under the increasing pressure of rising overheads and falling sales, which are taking their toll on the casual dining sector. The industry has plunged to a £93m loss in the last 12 months, in a year that has [...]
Mike Ashley demands landlords link rent to sales November 17, 2019 Retail tycoon Mike Ashley, the founder of Sports Direct, has demanded that new rent deals are tied to sales across his high street empire. Ashley has reportedly asked landlords to agree to turnover rents, where up to 15 per cent of the rent payable is linked to in-store sales. Read more: Sports Direct ends two [...]
Fuller’s takes a hit on sale of brewery business November 15, 2019 UK pub chain Fuller, Smith & Turner warned this morning that the costs associated with the sale of its brewery business to Japanese beer giant Asahi have been higher than expected. Shares in the company fell 5.69 per cent to 990.24p after it said profit for the full year ended 28 March is expected to [...]
Carpetright accepts cut-price £15m rescue deal from Meditor November 15, 2019 Carpetright has accepted a cut-price £15.2m bid from its largest shareholder amid fears it cannot pay off its debt pile. Shares in the company soared more than 14 per cent this morning after its directors unanimously recommended the 5p per share offer from Meditor, a 30 per cent shareholder. Read more: Major shareholder swallows £41m [...]
Exclusive: Questions over Chilango’s future after burrito chain calls in restructuring firm RSM November 14, 2019 Mexican chain Chilango, best known for its “Burrito Bonds”, is in talks to secure its long-term future with restructuring firm RSM and is more than six weeks late posting its accounts. Morning Wire understands from a source familiar with the discussions that the firm is considering all options including administration or a company voluntary arrangement [...]
Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick takes stock sale to over $700m November 14, 2019 Just days after disposing more than a fifth of his stake in ride-hailing app Uber, ousted chief executive Travis Kalanick has sold a further 6.1m shares in the company he helped found. According to a company filing submitted yesterday, the entrepreneur sold an additional $164m (£127.6m) of stock, taking the total disposed of this month [...]
Ceramics maker Portmeirion warns on profits November 14, 2019 Ceramics maker Portmeirion warned that profits would be lower than expected this year after export sales plunged due to weakening demand in South Korea. In a trading update this morning the company said “significant historic demand” for its classic Botanic Garden ranges had led to other countries shipping in to South Korea, resulting in overstocking [...]