Bosses of crisis-hit cake chain Patisserie Valerie could be hauled before parliament after a shock £40million black hole was uncovered in its accounts (Daily Mail). Chief executive Luke Johnson, who owns more than a third of the cafe’s parent company Patisserie Holdings, is facing calls to account for his governance of the business in Parliament. Trading in the firm’s shares has been frozen and long-serving finance director Chris Marsh, 44, arrested on suspicion of fraud after the scandal pushed it to the brink of collapse last week.
Inflation slipped to 2.4 per cent last month in a surprise drop led by lower food and non-alcoholic drink prices (Daily Mail). It dropped further than expected last month as the falling price of meat and chocolate helped reduce some of the pressure on cash-strapped British consumers (The Guardian). Britain’s inflation rate fell much more than expected during September with a broad-based fall in the pace of price growth reversing a sharp increase in August, according to data from the Office for National Statistics published on Wednesday (Financial Times).
Defiant Unilever boss Paul Polman has defended a controversial attempt to move the company’s headquarters to the Netherlands, after the bid was sunk by a shareholder rebellion (Daily Mail). Speaking publicly about the climbdown for the first time, he said the proposal was the right thing to do and defended his legacy as chief executive.
Carrefour, the world’s second-largest retailer by revenues, said on Wednesday after market close that sales accelerated slightly in the third quarter, driven by performance in Brazil (Financial Times). The group said it recorded total sales of €21.1bn during the three months, in line with analyst consensus.
Patisserie Valerie mogul Luke Johnson is facing yet another headache this week as plans to sell his Gail’s Artisan Bakery chain have been delayed by Brexit (Telegraph). Last year the chain was reported to be exploring options for fresh funding, including a possible sale that could have valued the company as high as £200m. Gail’s Bakery’s parent company Bread Holdings, backed by serial entrepreneur Mr Johnson, had appointed KPMG to advise on sale options.
The UK’s most popular tissue brand, Kleenex Mansize, has been forced to clean up its image after consumers complained its name was sexist (Telegraph). After more than sixty years Kleenex is phasing out the Mansize tissues name, deciding instead to call the disposable handkerchiefs “Extra Large” tissues. Kimberly-Clark, which owns Kleenex, said it succumbed to growing public demand to change the name, despite not itself believing that the Mansize branding suggests or endorses gender inequality.
Constellation Brands announced Rob Sands will be stepping down from his role as chief executive at the brewer behind Corona beer (Financial Times). His successor, Bill Newlands, will be the first outsider to run the family-controlled company, which is also known for its wines — of both the bottled and boxed variety — and has more recently turned its attention to marijuana.
Pernod Ricard started its fiscal year with an upbeat tone as demand for premium foreign spirits in China and India soars amid rising incomes (Bloomberg). The boon in Asia echoes last week’s strong performance by rival LVMH’s wine and spirits division, which includes Belvedere vodka and Moet & Chandon champagne.
Amazon is poised to become the largest customer at Segro as the warehouse operator rides on the coat-tails of the irresistible rise in internet shopping and online deliveries (The Times £). As Segro published an upbeat assessment of trading during the third quarter, David Sleath, chief executive, said that the American online shopping company was likely to overtake DHL, the parcels delivery group, in terms of the amount of space it rents from Segro to store goods in transit.
A multibillion-dollar Asian rival to KFC will make its first foray into the UK on Thursday, opening in London’s Earl’s Court (Telegraph). Jollibee, which offers single plates combining fried chicken, tomato spaghetti, beef with gravy and rice, has plans for rapid expansion across Europe.
Online marketplace eBay has filed a US lawsuit against Amazon claiming the retail giant used eBay’s internal messaging system to poach its sellers (Sky News). The lawsuit alleges that Amazon representatives signed up for eBay accounts and sent messages to persuade users to sell their goods on Amazon, which eBay said violated its user agreement.
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