Deliveroo is poised to swerve around doubters in the City and roar towards a blowout float this week, despite mounting concerns about its use of gig-economy workers. (The Times £)

Britain’s leading technology investor and a huge backer of takeaway delivery platforms has said that he will not be investing in Deliveroo, the company floating in London this week with an £8 billion valuation. (The Times £)

One might ask why they are singling out Deliveroo while investing in other companies engaging in questionable behaviour, questions Ruth Sutherland in The Mail. “My suspicion, though, is that the ethics of the gig economy are a proxy for other, less lofty reasons to steer clear of the float. Fund managers may have qualms on moral grounds that Deliveroo’s business model is exploitative of workers – but they will definitely be aware of the financial risks.” (The Daily Mail)

In speaking out against this float, the City establishment is not just fretting about the valuation or the model. It is waving two fingers at Sunak — and not in the peace sign suggested by Deliveroo’s kangaroo logo. (The Times £)

CEO William Shu clings to the notion that its riders prize its flexible terms, but Deliveroo is unappetising substitute for anyone laid off by BHS or John Lewis who needs to pay the rent. Deliveroo is likely to race out of the stock market gates. But any company that does not offer its workforce fair terms exists on borrowed time. The law will catch up eventually with these gig economy mercenaries. (The Times £)

Customers of Deliveroo seeking a slice of the company’s blockbuster float are set to receive larger portions of shares if they have ordered regularly through the Deliveroo app. (The Times £)

Asda has begun a discounting push and overhaul of its product ranges as the billionaire Issa brothers put their stamp on Britain’s number three supermarket. (The Telegraph)

Asda’s equal pay row risks opening the aisles to more claims – Supreme Court victory for shop floor workers is the first step in a legal battle that could leave retailers with £8bn black hole (The Telegraph). Thousands of women who work at Asda are celebrating after victory in a long-running equal pay lawsuit against the supermarket (The Daily Mail). Asda shop workers have won the latest key stage in their fight for equal pay in a ruling that could lead to a £500m compensation claim (The Guardian). More than 44,000 Asda workers have won the latest leg of their equal pay claim with bosses through a Supreme Court ruling, paving the way for a legal battle that could last years (Sky News).

The former chief executive of Premier Foods Gavin Darby is in talks with the private equity firm Cinven about a £1.5bn takeover bid for Valeo, the branded grocery group which owns Kettle crisps and Rowse honey. (Sky News)

All but one of the landlords that joined a legal challenge to a restructuring of Caffè Nero have dropped out of the battle, as the coffee-shop chain fights off a daring raid from the billionaire buyers of Asda. (The Times £)

The retail sector rebounded last month after suffering a sharp fall in sales at the beginning of the year (The Times £). Spending on home improvements and garden furniture in February, in preparation for the restart of outdoor socialising in England next week, helped the retail sector stage a modest comeback during the UK’s third lockdown (The Guardian).

Mary Portas has issued a plea to the Government to lift family-run stores with a ‘Shop Out to Help Out’ scheme as lockdown is lifted. The Government’s former high street tsar has joined fashion and beauty entrepreneurs Henry Holland and Charlotte Tilbury, throwing her weight behind the scheme as town centre shops prepare to reopen on April 12. (The Daily Mail)

John Lewis looks to a future away from the shop floor, writes The FT. The challenge for John Lewis and many others is not just shoring up profitability as they emerge from the pandemic, but of working out how many stores they need now that shoppers have shown an increasing willingness to transact online. (The Financial Times £)

If any more evidence about the growing popularity of home delivery services was needed, the flotation of Parsley Box has provided it. (The Daily Mail)

HelloFresh’s UK boss steps up for a battle: ‘Meal delivery is here to stay - and I’ll be taking on Deliveroo’. (The Daily Mail)

Tough new rules aimed at regulating the CBD food supplement market in the UK will come into force nationwide this week. (Sky News)

The blockage of the Suez Canal will accelerate the global shift away from just-in-time supply chains, according to the boss of the world’s largest container shipping line. (The Financial Times £)

Gym chain Virgin Active is using a controversial new tool that will allow it to push through a restructuring even if it is opposed by property owners. Landlords fear that the so-called “cram down” mechanism, permitted under Part 26a of the Companies Act, could also be used by a raft of other high street chains in their efforts to avoid repaying the estimated £6.5bn in rent that has built up during the pandemic. (The Times £)

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