Polman bows out of Unilever with a rich legacy, but a tarnished reputation November 29, 2018 When Paul Polman announced his plan to quit as boss of Unilever last autumn, he had plenty of reasons to think he would be leaving the consumer goods giant on a high: he had fought off a £115bn takeover attempt from Kraft Heinz earlier in the year and forged a reputation as a champion of [...]
Angry Beefeaters: Historic Royal Palaces staff may take to the picket lines after losing pension scheme November 29, 2018 Beefeaters from the Tower of London will vote tomorrow on whether to strike for the first time in more than 50 years in a row over pension cuts. The iconic guards, as well as Jewel House Wardens and other employees of Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) are set to lose their defined benefit pension schemes, and [...]
Britvic profits fizz in the face of challenging year as low sugar alternatives surge November 29, 2018 Britvic, PepsiCo's UK producer, defied a flat retail market hit by a CO2 shortage this summer to exceed expectations in its full year results, giving share prices a five per cent boost. But as traders felt the sugar rush this morning, consumers have done the opposite, moving towards low and zero-sugar alternatives in the wake [...]
Hostelworld camps down for flat growth but hints at future bookings boost November 29, 2018 Hostelworld today said its projected earnings for the full year are in line with expectations as it wraps up a strategic review to boost bookings in the coming years. The Dublin-based company said earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation are on track to meet the board’s expectations, but that like-for-like bookings are likely to [...]
Bottoms up: Greene King heralds heatwave as profits and revenue grow in World Cup year November 29, 2018 Shares in pub owner Greene King ticked up in early morning trading as investors welcomed growing like-for-like sales in its pubs across the UK after a sweltering summer saw drink sales swell. The figures Statutory profit before tax grew 3.2 per cent to £127.7m in the pub chain’s half-year results, compared to the same six [...]
Unilever chief executive set to retire at the end of the year after shareholder revolt against plans to scrap dual-listed structure November 29, 2018 Unilever’s chief executive is set to step down at the end of the year, the company revealed today. Paul Polman will retire by the end of 2018, the maker of Dove soap and Marmite said, staying on to help with the transition as the company’s president of beauty and personal care, Alan Jope, takes up the [...]
John Whittaker-led consortium abandons £2.9bn offer for Intu, sending shares crashing November 29, 2018 Intu’s share price nosedived by 36 per cent this morning after a consortium ditched plans to pay £2.9bn for the shopping centre empire, blaming market uncertainty. Intu had repeatedly extended the deadline for the offer from a consortium led by billionaire shareholder John Whittaker, but today the consortium said it would abandon the takeover attempt. “Given the [...]
Tiffany sales disappoint Wall Street as Chinese shoppers curb their luxury spending November 28, 2018 A slump in demand from wealthy Chinese tourists has taken the sparkle off of Tiffany’s latest sales report this afternoon, with weaker-than-expected results sending shares down during pre-trading on Wall Street. The luxury jewellery maker missed its estimates today after reporting a three per cent rise in same-store sales, falling below Refinitiv projections of a [...]
Ikea’s change of focus hurts group profits as it braces for redundancies November 28, 2018 Ikea group profits dropped by a quarter in its latest financial year, driven down by billions of pounds invested into adapting to people's changing shopping habits. The furniture giant’s parent company, Ingka Group, reported the €780m (£688.7m) year-on-year drop in its full-year results this morning, blaming spending on transforming its business model to an approach focused heavily on [...]