Next, House of Fraser, Uber, Conviviality, Amazon and Bake Off: your commercial news round-up
updated on 29 March 2018
It’s Easter, and that means late-morning starts and excessive consumption. However, we would suggest that you intersperse the indulgence of the holidays with a level of interest in the big commercial news stories. As a reference point, here is our selection from last week:
- Next has admitted that it has had its “toughest trading period for 25 years” in the 12 months to January 2018, with pre-tax profits dropping to £726.1 million. The mid-price high-street space occupied by Next and others has been defined by some retail sector analysists as struggling, with one critic criticising the players: “I think retail generally in this market place has been quite lazy.”
- More worrying high-street news, with the revelation that House of Fraser’s Chinese owner is putting £15 million towards the struggling company. The store is trying to reduce floor space across its nearly 60 stores by 30% after, among other things, “dismal Christmas trading figures”.
- Uber has sold its Southeast Asia operation to a Singapore-based competitor, Grab, hot on the heels of selling its Chinese operation to local rival, Didi Chuxing. It provides another indicator that Uber is reducing its international footprint, with the company’s CEO writing: “One of the potential dangers of our global strategy is that we take on too many battles across too many fronts with too many competitors.”
- Cheap booze purveyor Conviviality has confirmed that it is going into administration, potentially putting around 2,600 at risk. The company, which supplies more than 700 off-licences and more than 23,000 pubs, must appoint administrators within two weeks.
- In a tasty tie-up, Amazon has snapped up the chance to sponsor “The Great British Bake Off” in its next series on Channel 4, The deal is thought to be worth £5 million, making the show one of the most valuable entertainment sponsorships in the UK.
Be sure to check the News every Thursday for this weekly commercial news round-up. Follow @LawCareersNetUK on Twitter and like us on Facebook for instant business news updates.
