Pets at Home shares soar after after it bucks the high street blues to book rising sales as its turnaround strategy pays off (The Daily Mail). Pets at Home upgraded its profit expectations for the second time in three months, prompting a sharp rise in its share price (The Financial Times £). Pampering more pooches and overhauling its vet practice has helped Pets at Home to raise its profit guidance after an improvement in sales (The Times £).
Shop prices have fallen for a sixth consecutive month as retailers increase their discounting and as food prices inflation eases (The Times £).
Compass Group, the world’s largest caterer, has announced plans to scale back operations in Europe, Japan, and Brazil as the global economy shows signs of weakness (The Financial Times £). The world’s biggest catering group has sounded a warning about the European economy after being forced to take a £300m hit amid deteriorating conditions in several countries on the Continent (The Times £). One of the world’s biggest catering companies is to axe thousands of jobs across Europe as sweeping cuts across the banks and carmakers hit staff canteens (The Telegraph). Around £2.5bn was wiped off Compass Group’s value yesterday after it warned it will cut jobs amid tougher trading in Europe (The Daily Mail)
The traditional Christmas dinner is likely to make a bigger dent in your wallet this year, because supply issues have pushed up prices. (The BBC)
One of Just Eat’s leading investors is calling on fellow shareholders to stem the “terrible value destruction” of recent years and accept the recommended all-paper bid from Takeaway.com. (The Times £)
Former Eddie Stobart boss Andrew Tinkler has tabled a rival proposal to rescue the debt-laden logistics group from collapse through an emergency equity raising backed by existing shareholders (The Financial Times £). Eddie Stobart’s former boss has launched a rescue bid for the company in an attempt to hijack a proposal by Dbay Advisors (The Daily Mail).
Were Chilango’s ‘burrito bonds’ destined to fail, asks The Daily Mail? When the Mexican chain took £3.7m from investors its finances were already in trouble, losing lost a quarter-of-a-million pounds in the three months to March. (The Daily Mail)
All it took was for Goldman Sachs to decide that Tate & Lyle was a sweet investment for investors to take the hint and lift the company towards the top of the FTSE 250 yesterday. (The Times £)
The West End landlord Shaftesbury saw the value of its portfolio decline in the year to September for the first time in a decade as the UK retail crisis rolled in to prime central London (The Financial Times £). The turmoil in the retail industry has hit the West End of London, as Shaftesbury, the owner of large parts of Covent Garden, Chinatown and Carnaby Street, has suffered a fall in earnings (The Times £). Shaftesbury has seen its property empire hit by turmoil on the High Street (The Daily Mail).
Why are service station snacks so expensive? A bottle of water costs four times more than in a supermarket, the snapshot of prices by insurer Admiral suggests. (The BBC)
All the evidence suggests that the annual Black Friday extravaganza has become a trap from which retailers cannot escape: unable to live with it, or without it, they are looking for ways to make it palatable. (The Telegraph £)
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