Wiggle has entered into a £180 million
exclusivity agreement with private equity firm Bridgepoint.
Bridgepoint, which also owns retailer Fat Face, plans to expand
Wiggle’s international reach, reports the
Telegraph.
Revenue at multititle catalogue group Findel,
which operates Kitbag and Express
Gifts, was £254.6 million in the six months to 30th
September 2011. The figure is slightly down on 2010, when revenue
before exceptional items was £264.0 million. The group says
its three-year turnaround plan is underway with
“encouraging signs”. Pretax losses narrowed from
£15 million in the first half 2010 to £10.7 million in
2011 with sales in first eight weeks of the second half up 2.9
percent and Express Gifts trading at 10.9 percent above the
previous year. The Independent has more on Kitbag‘s performance.
N Brown Group, the parent company of
Simply Be, Simply Yours and
High and Mighty, has secured a £100 million
funding deal to help the business achieve its future growth
plans-in the UK and overseas. The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS)
refinanced an existing £50 million bilateral revolving
credit facility, while HSBC provided the other £50
million.
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has opened an investigation into
the trading practices of MyCity Deal, trading as
Groupon UK, as to whether Groupon is complying
with consumer protection legislation. The investigation follows
complaints the OFT has received in relation to Groupon’s trading
practice; it will now consider whether Groupon infringed any
laws.
Ocado is facing a consumer backlash after the
number of the deliveries it makes on time are dropping. In
August, the average punctuality rate was 95.5 percent. The rate
currently fluctuates between 90 and 95 percent. The problems are
blamed on Ocado’s capacity at its Hatfield distribution, writes
the Telegraph.
Group sales at DIY specialist Kingfisher for the
third quarter were up 3.5 percent with growth in each of the
three main operating divisions-France, UK and Ireland and
international. At Screwfix, sales rose 7.0
percent to £136 million. At sister company
B&Q, total sales grew by 0.4 percent to
£928 million. Warm autumn weather boosted sales of outdoor
seasonal products, up some 12 percent, with garden furniture
sales up 68 percent.
The Financial Times profiles Ed Bussey, a
Figleaves cofounder and a nonexec of
Charles Tyrwhitt.
As reported
last month, furniture retailer MFI, which
exited the high street in 2008, has officially relaunched as an
online-only retailer. The MFI brand was bought by Walker Capital,
which also operates Victoria Plumb, an online
and mail order bathroom retailer, in 2010. A new management team
hasbeen developing the relaunch of the MFI brand, including
commercial director Adrian Storr who has 15 years retail
experience, including nine years at MFI.
Having launched a discount-voucher site in
October, apparel cataloguer MandM Direct has
further expanded into new areas. It has partnered with
ThinkInsure to create a new MandMInsure
insurance website. A range of services are on offer including
life and home insurance as well as a mortgage comparison
service.
MBL, the UK distributor of home entertainment
products, has decided to commence an insolvency process for its
Outnow Home Entertainment DVD-rental business.
The business was acquired in February 2011, but due to the
“significant working capital requirements” to support this
division, in particular to purchase new release stock and
advertising, a decision has been made to cease trading, said a
company statement. The business was purchased as a low-cost entry
into DVD rental and generated a loss in the year to date of
£152,000.
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