A few weeks ago, my colleague Elliott caught up with Andy Laurillard, co-founder of Giggling Squid. Andy’s Thai restaurant chain is one the restaurant sector’s few Covid-19 success stories, having transitioned seamlessly to delivery while always...
If there were a league table of the holders of the most stressful jobs in retail in 2020, then Helen Dickinson, as CEO of the British Retail Consortium, would be near the top. Representing 170 major retailers, who between them have revenues of £180bn and...
A few weeks ago, my colleague Elliott caught up with Andy Laurillard, co-founder of Giggling Squid. Andy’s Thai restaurant chain is one the restaurant sector’s few Covid-19 success stories, having transitioned seamlessly to delivery while always...
For years, fashion week season has been the undisputed highlight of the industry’s collective calendar. Despite murmurs of dissatisfaction about its impact on the environment, a low return on investment for labels and the frequent instances of designer...
The last six months have been the most turbulent and destructive the hospitality, travel and leisure sector has seen in recent memory. Few could have predicted that businesses would be faced with no customers, zero revenue and government imposed...
The second half of our Leadership Summit with Signal AI and Tortoise Media brought together global experts in AI. Structured across two panels, entitled The Global AI Race and AI Disruptors, this section of the event explored the future of AI in great...
Two weeks ago, The MBS Group hosted a behind-closed-doors conversation with three of the brightest minds in corporate sustainability and ethical fashion. Looking to deep-dive into what consumers care about, and a brand’s responsibilities to its...
The MBS Group is once again delighted to partner with WiHTL to launch the Women to Watch and Advocates for Change in Hospitality, Travel & Leisure Index for 2020. Following on from last year’s inaugural Index, this publication aims to...
Over the last few years, the travel, leisure and hospitality sector has been making some real strides on diversity and inclusion. By the end of 2019, there was hardly a business in the sector not taking D&I seriously – and investors, boards and...
Central England Co-op trials in-store app Central England Co-op is trialling a scan, pay and go app which allows customers to pay for items without visiting a checkout. The pilot is in partnership with Ubamarket, and is taking place in the West Midlands. Read more on The Grocer
Arcadia files for administration The parent company of Topshop and Topman among other retail brands has gone into administration, putting 13,000 jobs at risk. In a statement, the retail group announced that it has appointed Deloitte and that no redundancies were being made immediately. Read more on BBC News
FrieslandCampina Germany rolls out cost-cutting measures The German arm of FrieslandCampina is accelerating its transformation strategy, which will include the loss of 195 jobs. In a review of the business in November, FrieslandCampina identified that profit margins in Germany remained under pressure. Read more on FoodBev
Unilever completes unification process and becomes UK-listed company Since its formation, Unilever has been owned through two separated listed companies, a Dutch NV and a UK PLC. Today, the consumer goods giant has completed the unification of its legal structure and will operate under a single UK parent company. Read more on FoodBev
Tory Burch swings to a loss in UK and Germany The UK arm of the US fashion label has reported losses for 2019, despite reporting a 3.32% uptick in sales to £24.9m. The company has said that trading since this time has been significantly impacted by the pandemic. Read more on Fashion Network
Yoox Net-a-Porter unveils new set of sustainability goals Named Infinity, the online fashion marketplace's new targets aim to change the way fashion is made, sold and used. The ten-year strategy is based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. Read more on Fashion United
Sales rise at Sosandar during Covid-19 The fashion ecommerce business has narrowed its half-year losses, benefiting from a surge in online sales during Covid-19. The business narrowed EBITDA losses to £1m during the six months ending September 30, compared with a £2.7m loss the prior year. Read more on Retail Week
DoorDash aims to add $11bn to its valuation during IPO According to reports, the food delivery startup is expecting a valuation of between $23.8bn and $27bn from its IPO, compared to the $16bn it was valued at during its Series H funding round in June. Read more on TechCrunch
PE-backed SFERRA Fine Linens acquires further brand SFERRA Fine Linens, which is backed by the private equity firm Highlander Partners, has acquired Pratesi, an Italian luxury linens brand. Read more on PE Hub
Ascena offloads divisions to Sycamore Partners Ascena Retail Group has agreed to sell Ann Taylor, Loft, Lane Bryant and Lou & Grey to Sycamore Partners, a private equity firm that owns Belk, Talbots, The Limited and Torrid, among other retail holdings. Read more on WWD
Pizza Hut Delivery targets north east and south west as part of expansion plans Pizza Hut Delivery is targeting its growth in the north east and south west of England. The business has unveiled plans to open a further 125 sites in these regions. Read more on Propel Hospitality
Greene King to launch new cake-focused delivery brand The brewer and retailer has added to its portfolio of online delivery brands, launching The Big Cake company which is available through Just Eat. Read more on Propel Hospitality
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