Marks & Spencer is fighting back against its two years of falling sales with larger stores, lower prices, family-sized packs of food and Percy Pigs, its newly revamped Hempstead Valley store, in Kent shows (The Guardian).
The retailer says it aims to have a store “with the mark of a supermarket and the soul of a fresh market”. At least two more larger food stores in the same style will open before Christmas. It plans a net new 50 new standalone food stores in the next three to five years but not all will be larger outlets.
Tesco has joined the crackdown on plastic in Christmas glitter with a switch to a plastic-free version for its festive products this year (The Guardian).
Diageo has committed £180m to green energy and water recovery solutions at 11 of its African breweries in what is billed as its largest environmental investment in a decade (Financial Times £).
A Freedom of Information request from business rates consultancy Altus has found that almost one in six English firms has been summoned for non-payment of business rates in the past year (Financial Times £).
US retailers have warned that a new wave of layoffs could be on the cards as a result of President Donal Trump’s new round of trade tariffs. Data published on Friday shows the retail trade employed 49,000 fewer people last month than in July 2017. It is the only sector of the economy to have shed jobs in the past two years. The figures would have been worse if it had not been for hiring by grocers and car dealerships (Financial Times £)
Juul has launched the Juul C1 – Bluetooth-connected vapes that monitor usage. Customers have to go through stringent age verification checks, including facial recognition and two-step background check with third-party databases before they can use the device. It has launched the product in a bid to stamp out anxieties about teenagers taking up the habit (Financial Times £).
Government analysis show businesses have become “markedly less optimistic” about the nation’s trading prospects as it prepares to quit the European Union (The Times £).
Europe could be poised to fall into the grip of African swine fever, threatening the continent’s pork industry (Financial Times £). Romania saw 300 new outbreaks last month – up from nearly 80 in June and 30 in January.
The Postings shopping centre in Kirkcaldy, Fife, is to get a £1m investment from owner Tahir Ali. Eighteen of its 21 shop units are vacant. Ali is in talks with an independent cinema operator about taking a unit Tesco previously operated. He is trying to attract tenants with incentives, such as rent-free periods (The Times £).
Just Eat is contesting Danish tax authorities’ claim that it owes more than £100m in back taxes. Its accounts published last week show it has made £21m provision to cover the potential bill (The Times £).
Bank of England governor Mark Carney has suggested a no-deal Brexit could trigger food shortages (The Independent).
The online food ordering sector is thriving but profitability remains off the menu (Financial Times £).
Corks were popping at Majestic Wine after the retailers announced the sale of its shops for £95m to Fortress Investment Group (The Times £).
The US has warned that it will not strike a free trade deal with the UK unless the digital tax due to be imposed on tech giants next year is scrapped (Sky News).
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