Department store John Lewis have announced that whilst their rivals may be suffering, they are growing market share. The Nationwide building society has seen a surge of deposits recently, partly the effect of the Northern Rock collapse. Both businesses are growing market share during a slowdown. What is it that links them? In news links Nationwide talk about the quality of their assets, John Lewis MD Andy Street is not Continue reading →

I booked a hotel overseas via Expedia the other day and they sent me a free mobile SIM card provided by Sim4Travel. It is a really good idea. A prepay SIM which gives you reasonably priced local calls in the country where you are travelling (about GBP0.25 per minute) but – even more importantly – lets you receive calls forwarded from your home country for free. It is a major Continue reading →

Since the credit crunch of the summer a recession seems likely. The online retail sector may indeed be booming, but it only represents part of the economy and the other bits of the economy are suffering from a twin dose of cost inflation and asset price deflation. It seems clear from our work that the news is likely to hit worst the businesses that are doing a bad job. Some Continue reading →