Today in Europe
Esprit drops goal of saving 100 million per year
Chinese clothing group Esprit will not succeed in annually cutting costs of one billion Hong Kong dollar, about a hundred million euro, by 2015. According to new CEO Jose Manuel Martinez Gutierrez they are no longer applicable. Read more
Duty free division Autogrill independently to exchange
Following the split of Autogrill in a separate restaurant division and an independent duty free branch, the shares of the duty free division will be traded on the Borsa Italiana. The company says it is still doing well, despite the economic crisis in Europe. Read more
Puma lowers prognoses
German sportswear group Puma has lowered its prognoses for sales and profits for the year, because sales in Europe and Asia leave a lot to be desired. According to company management sales will be 1% to 5% lower than in 2012 and also the operating profit is under pressure. Read more
German workers Amazon go on strike
Employees of internet retailer Amazon in Germany have gone on an old-fashioned strike. Yesterday hundreds of workers stopped working for a day to demand better working conditions and higher wages. Read more
Germany investigates price fixing potatoes
The German government is investigating allegations of years of price fixing on the market of potatoes and onions. The Bundeskartellamt has already performed a house search at nine businesses, while five other companies are also under investigation. Damages for consumers could surpass a billion euro. Read more
Mark Maidment new head of Ben Sherman
British chain of men’s wear Ben Sherman has appointed Mark Maidment as new CEO, in succession of Tom Chubb. He was CEO since November 2012 and is leaving to lead parent company Oxford Industries. Read more
French government wants tax on digital devices and services
Paris is working on a tax which would make Apple, Samsung, Google and co pay contributions, to stimulate French culture. There are multiple proposals to be considered, among which a tax on smartphones, tablets, laptops, e-readers, internet TV’s and gaming consoles. Even taxes on content services such as iTunes and YouTube are not off the table. Read more
Ahold finds new CIO at Morrisons
Dutch supermarket group Ahold has hired Ben Wichart as new Chief Information Officer. In that brand new function he has to assist the parent company of Albert Heijn and American chains like Giant and Peapod in the deployment of its “Reshaping Retail” strategy. Read more
H&M, Inditex and C&A sign charter for safer factories in Bangladesh
Three weeks after 1,100 textile workers died when their workshops collapsed in Bangladesh, H&M, Inditex and C&A have signed a charter that should drastically improve the security of Bengal textile workers. Read more
Danone buys American baby food producer Happy Family
French food company Danone has acquired American baby food producer Happy Family, in an effort to strengthen its department of child nutrition, which last year already accounted for twenty percent of total company sales. Read more
Metro reduces cash & carry activities
German retail group Metro is to withdraw its cash & carry activities from a number of countries. The resources this frees up, will be invested in a reorganisation of the company in home country Germany. The chain also wants to focus more on e-commerce, a trend Metro has missed so far. Read more
E-tail giant Rakuten sells 15% more in first quarter
The division of the Japanese giant Rakuten that focuses on e-commerce has had sales of 68.776 billion yen (521 million euro) in the first quarter of 2013, 15.3% more than in the same period of 2012. The company made a profit of 15.727 billion yen (119 million euro), 6.8% more than a year ago. Read more
Chances are American online shops will become subject to VAT
If the American House of Representatives follows its Senate, most American online shops will become subject to VAT. With this new legislation, the United States wants to make an end to the competitive advantage pure players have had for years over classic or multi-channel retailers. Read more
More in Europe
61 million euro profit for Delhaize in first quart
Belgian distribution group Delhaize has closed the first quarter with a profit of 61 million euro, much better than the loss... Read more
Henkel profits from emerging markets
German Henkel saw its sales and profits rise in the past quarter, thanks to good results in emerging countries. This way... Read more
Esprit issues profit warning
Clothing chain Esprit is sending out a profit warning after disappointing results in the third quarter. A new drop in sales and... Read more
Alibaba almost doubles sales and more than doubles
China’s largest e-commerce player Alibaba saw its sales rise by 80% and its profit by an impressive 150% in the last... Read more
Pierre-Olivier Beckers retires as CEO of Delhaize
Belgian Delhaize's chairman Pierre-Olivier Beckers is resigning by the end of the year. Beckers will probably remain a director at... Read more
Sainsbury's stays on the right track
Pre-tax profits of Sainsbury’s for the full year (ending on 16 March) fell by 1.4% to 788 million pounds (935... Read more
Most popular in last 7 days
- Metro reduces cash & carry activities
- Ahold finds new CIO at Morrisons
- H&M, Inditex and C&A sign charter for safer factories in Bangladesh
- Danone buys American baby food producer Happy Family
- Duty free division Autogrill independently to exchange
- Esprit drops goal of saving 100 million per year
- French government wants tax on digital devices and services
- Mark Maidment new head of Ben Sherman
- Germany investigates price fixing potatoes
- Puma lowers prognoses
