Ashley (Laura) Holding (ALY) to close 40 stores, putting hundreds of jobs at risk. New chairman wants fewer but larger stores in UK and is keen to expand presence in China. Laura Ashley is to close 40 stores, representing a quarter of its UK outlets, in a move that puts hundreds of jobs at risk. The company’s new chairman, Andrew Khoo, who took on the role from his father last week, said the stores were closing amid a “challenging environment” in the UK that had hit sales of expensive products such as furniture. Khoo told the Press Association that he wanted fewer but larger stores in the UK and was also keen to expand Laura Ashley’s presence in China.
Asos issues shock profit warning after November downturn. Downturn for fashion retailer suggests high street malaise is spreading to online companies. ASOS (ASC) has issued an unexpected profit warning after a poor November, becoming the latest retailer to be hit by weak consumer confidence, increased discounting and unusually mild weather. The downturn suggests the high street malaise is spreading to online retailers, with consumers worried about what Brexit will mean for their finances. Shares in Asos crashed 41% to £24.55 in Monday morning trading, the lowest since January 2015 – wiping £1.4bn off the firm’s market value. The rival online fashion retailer Boohoo tumbled almost 20% but cut the loss to about 10% after rushing out a statement saying that trading remained strong.
SSE (SSE) and npower scrap merger plan amid ‘challenging conditions’. Government price cap and increasing competition are behind failure to reach a deal. The merger of two of the UK’s biggest energy firms has been called off after npower and SSE blamed the government’s price cap and increasing competition for their failure to reach a deal. Indications that the merger might collapse came in November when the companies admitted they were having to reconsider their terms and would have to inject more capital into the new energy supplier because of changes in the market. SSE, which runs the UK’s second-biggest energy supplier, said on Monday it was considering whether to demerge and list its retail arm, or sell it, but believed it would be best positioned outside of the company. The firm also runs energy networks and power stations.
Jaguar Land Rover is planning to announce thousands of job cuts in the new year as part of a £2.5bn savings plan to ward off the threat from Brexit, falling sales in China and a drop in demand for diesel cars. Britain’s biggest carmaker employs 40,000 in the UK and has already cut 1,000 temporary contract workers at its plant in Solihull, which builds Range Rovers and the Land Rover Discovery SUV. It has also reduced working hours for some workers, including at its Wolverhampton factory in the run-up to Christmas. Plans for further job cuts come after the firm, which is owned by the Indian conglomerate Tata and is a major employer in the West Midlands, made a £90m loss in the three months to September, hit by falling sales in China and Europe.
If you face a long wait in the queue at your local parcels office to pick up a missed Christmas delivery this weekend, spare a thought for those living in one part of south-east London who say they have endured months of postal woes after Royal Mail closed their depot. Lost bank cards, letters taking a month to arrive, several days between deliveries and, most frustrating of all, 60-minute waits in the rain to pick up parcels that could not be delivered: these have all been endured by East Dulwich residents who are furious that Royal Mail (RMG) appears to be failing to provide the service it is legally obliged to offer. But it is not just an issue for East Dulwich. Since it was privatised, Royal Mail has shut more than 50 delivery offices and more closures are threatened as the company seeks to reduce costs.
