Features

Jan- 2020 -

10 January

Spooked markets seem soothed by Iran-US climb-down

When Iran decided to hit back on US military facilities after president Trump ordered the assassination of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, there was talk of the outbreak of war. NATO countries apparently implored Trump not to go for another attack, fearing that if he did things would escalate beyond control…

9 January

Who would have thought skinny jeans could be anyone’s undoing?

It’s not often that the business pages give you a good belly laugh. But today we have the spectacle of Marks & Spencer blaming its poor Christmas trading results partly on an oversupply of skinny jeans for men. Apparently customer surveys revealed that the high street bellwether’s ranges were “too old” the…

8 January

Greggs going vegan has paid dividends: we can all learn from them

There is an adage about business and entertainment emerging in the conservative media, which is “get woke, go broke”. It translates crudely to, “cave to the demands of social justice activists and you will suffer financially”. And while it is true that some have come a cropper by tilting the…

7 January

Northern Ireland’s business community want compensation for their Brexit troubles

To say that Brexit has been ‘divisive’ is both an understatement and also a cliché of the highest order. But Johnson’s election victory, as we are all now well versed, will not bring an immediate end to the arguing. Today we hear that business leaders and entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland want their…

6 January

As long as WW3 does not kick off, 2020 looks set to be a better year

All eyes on are on the rising tensions between the United States and Iran after president Trump ordered the assassination of Iran’s most powerful general, Qassem Suleimani. The oil price has risen, stocks have fallen this morning, and the threat of war almost always depresses global trade flows. But let’s bask in…

3 January

Volkswagen’s unceasing nightmare is a lesson in honesty

Readers will recall the scandal surrounding faked emissions tests conducted by the car-making giant, Volkswagen, in recent years. In case you have forgotten, the controversy surrounded the manufacturer’s attempts to depress the emissions readings on regulatory testing of its vehicles in order to artificially meet the standards on CO2 that were…

2 January

The internet need not be the scourge of every sector – just ask the CEO of Mountain Warehouse

The last decade in business was arguably characterised by one word: disruption. While the internet behemoths had already begun building serious fortunes in the 2000s, most would agree it was after 2010 that things really started motoring. Heralded as the great democratiser of information and services, the effects of a…

Dec- 2019 -

20 December

Finally, a government addressing the business rates fiasco

Regardless of your political colours, small businesses up and down the land will be pleased to hear of at least one policy which looks set to survive the transition from manifesto wish lists to actual policy and legislation, and that is a business rates overhaul. The prime minister, Boris Johnson, yesterday…

19 December

Airbnb is the latest ‘big tech’ monolith to run rings around our outdated legal apparatus

It may seem tangential to those who do not work in real estate, but there is a court case on the continent with major implications for the future of many sectors, which reached a critical phase yesterday. It is the case of Airbnb vs the French tourism association, in which…

18 December

Vera Lynn’s gin dispute is a window on a fascinating trademark problem

Everyone knows a bit of cockney rhyming slang, but what if your own name is the one being used, and then somebody tries to use it as their brand? This is exactly what happened to the singer Dame Vera Lynn, who has just been awarded £1,800 in legal costs from…