Business and Economics

PM May’s first major interview of 2017 sent the pound into free fall after she made comments hinting at a “hard-Brexit.” She told Sky News that the UK will not try and keep “bits of EU membership.” During the interview she said: “Often people talk in terms as if somehow we are leaving the EU but we still want to kind of keep bits of membership of the EU. We are leaving. We are coming out. We are not going...

The fashion retailer Next has announced some gloomy figures and has drastically cut its profit forecast. Following the devaluation of the pound, post-Brexit, Next also said it expects inflation to hit its customers, leading to price hikes to their goods. Shares tumbled over ten per cent as trading began, after it said that profits would be at the bottom end of predictions for 2017. Next’s financial performance is closely monitored by business analysts as for the last twenty years it...

What's the most outrageous thing your boss has ever asked you to do? Cleaning toilets, teaching English to foreign colleagues and wearing revealing or indecent clothes to model in are just some of the items featured on the top 50 list of unexpected tasks. Researchers found requests from the boss sometimes go from the sublime to the ridiculous – one unlucky respondent revealed they were asked to follow another member of staff who left work, as the boss suspected that...

The price of gold has been volatile in recent weeks mainly due to the upcoming US Federal Open Market Committee meeting, during which a decision on the US interest rate will be made. Gold started the second full week in December dipping to a nine-month low. And it’s likely that the yellow metal will remain volatile for some time, at least until investors figure the best path following the FOMC rate decision. Given a handful of positive data regarding the...

Forget Richard Branson, the creators of Pukka herbal teas could have the next big business success story. More than one million cups of Pukka Herbs tea are drunk every day in 40 counties, helping the company to a £28million annual turnover. But it all started as a single classified advert in a local magazine. Boss Tim Westwell, 55, has revealed the incredible story of how he met co-founder Sebastian Pole and how he battled depression and chronic back pain to make...

Your company is in debt, and your main credit is the most intimidating and powerful of them all: HMRC. What can you do, as a director, if your business owes money to HMRC that it just can’t afford to pay? MGJL has helped distressed companies manage their debts (including HMRC arrears) since 2007. Over the years, they have helped numerous companies recover from dire financial situations that involved serious tax debts to HMRC. Being in debt to HMRC is a...

From high tech to heavy industry, many of the world’s most successful businesses depend on credit to survive, operate and thrive. But an increasing number of businesses are letting credit take a backseat to prepaid business cards, at least when it comes to employee spending. Prepaid business cards, like the Prepaid Mastercard offered by icount, have become a popular alternative to credit cards for many UK businesses, both small and large. Companies tout their ability to reduce fraudulent spending as...

For any business owner, the key to success is simple: knowing where your money comes from and where it goes. Whether you sell a product or offer a service, having a deep understanding of your business’ finances gives you more power to make informed, effective decisions that fuel growth and help make each quarter more successful than the last. The stronger your understanding of your business’ finances, the more capably you’ll be able to operate and grow. Enter the forensic...

Following the emergence of quick-fire dating apps such as Tinder, happn and Grinder, a clever business app has taken off using the same premise that aims to build productive business relationships rather than fleeting encounters. Meet Shapr, a free networking app (iOS and Android) that suggests a daily batch of 10 to 15 nearby professionals who are also interested in expanding their professional networks. It’s like LinkedIn, but a lot cooler and much less formal. If a formalised ‘networking breakfast...