Sports Direct boss calls on Labour to reform business rates to get High Street back on track
THE boss of the group that owns Sports Direct has urged the Labour Government to finally reform business rates to get the High Street back on track.
Michael Murray, chief executive of Frasers Group, said he is yet to meet Chancellor Rachel Reeves despite her breakfasts with many of Britain’s boardrooms.
He said: “I’m happy to work with the Government if they want to listen to what would work. After all, we have a lot of shops and employ a lot of people.
“We are hoping a reform of business rates will finally happen.”
Mr Murray believes rates are too slow to react to changing property values.
The retail group has blamed the system for making shuttered House of Fraser stores unviable.
Labour’s manifesto spoke of business rates reform but there were no details in the King’s Speech to overhaul the system, which brings in £30billion for the Treasury.
The willingness to sit down with the Chancellor underlines how pro-business Labour has become and the difference in regime at Frasers, still 70 per cent-owned by Mike Ashley, who often clashed with ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Frasers Group, which operates more than 20million sq ft of stores, yesterday reported a 13 per cent rise in adjusted pre-tax profits to £544.8million and boosted its forecasts for this year to up to £625million.
That was despite a luxury spending slowdown impacting its premium Flannels business, and store closures at Game.
Mr Murray said he had ambitious plans for the group’s “Buy Now Pay Later” Frasers Plus arm to reach £1billion in sales.
Comment
A DECADE ago the idea that Mike Ashley would be involved in the world of luxury and payday-lending was unthinkable.
The tycoon was the “pile ’em high, sell ’em cheap” master of cut-throat retailing and a chaotic character to boot.
But under his son-in-law Michael Murray his retail empire has been almost refashioned.
He’s not quite there yet, because Frasers still has such a mad mish-mash of brands ranging from Agent Provocateur to Game to House of Fraser.
There will be more to come with Frasers Group but it is hard not to consider the extent of Mr Murray’s ambition and Mr Ashley’s appetite for action and think some fresh drama will arise soon.
Meta’s look on sunnies side
FACEBOOK owner Meta is considering taking a multibillion-pound stake in Ray-ban sunglasses maker EssilorLuxottica.
Mark Zuckerberg is said to be passionate about so-called “wearable tech”.
Meta launched its second version of smart glasses, which have built-in cameras and AI, with Ray-Ban earlier this year.
This update sold more in a few months than the previous one did in two years, EssilorLuxottica said.
Shares in the firm rose 3 per cent to €88billion (£73billion) after the Financial Times reported Meta’s interest.
Dunelm's on the up
SHARES in Dunelm jumped by over 8 per cent yesterday after the homewares retailer boosted its profit outlook.
The firm said it would make more than City expectations of £200million as it reported a 5 per cent rise in sales in its final quarter.
The £2billion business hailed its “strong performance” which came despite poor summer weather and supply disruption caused by Red Sea rebels.
Dunelm said sales of outdoor furniture slowed due to the cooler temperatures — but that had been compensated for as customers had bought from other parts of its range.
Brands’ icing on the cake
THE maker of Mr Kipling and Bisto gravy said customers are buying branded groceries again after two years of picking cheaper supermarket versions.
Premier Foods’ sales have been boosted for the last couple of years by hiking its prices above inflation levels.
During the height of the cost-of-living crisis, a tub of Bisto gravy shot up to £5.
However, the firm said while its sales growth had slowed to 5.3 per cent compared with 21 per cent growth a year, its sales volumes were up.
Boss Alex Whitehouse said that Premier Foods had used “sharper promotional pricing” — discounts — which meant “more shoppers bought more of our leading brands”.
It follows figures from Kantar showing sales of branded groceries increased by 3.6 per cent over the last month.
Premier Foods said it was also looking at other acquisition opportunities.
Mail’s vote win
STAMP price hikes and postal vote deliveries have boosted Royal Mail’s revenues.
Cash from deliveries grew by 11.2 per cent in the three months to the end of June, with parent company International Distribution Services on track to break even this year.
This comes as the £3.9billion takeover of Royal Mail by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky faces a national review.
The General Election saw Royal Mail handle 7.3million ballot papers, but voters in more than 90 constituencies complained of late delivery.
Childcare crisis
THE cost of childcare over the school summer holidays has risen to £1,049 per child on average.
A survey by the Coram Family and Childcare charity found families pay £635 more for six weeks of care than they do for after-school childcare.
Debanking rap
THE City watchdog has told banks to treat politicians more fairly in the wake of Nigel Farage’s debanking row.
The Financial Conduct Authority investigated whether people were denied accounts due to their political views.
It ruled all firms “could improve” how they deal with politicians, public servants and their relatives.
FCA executive director Sarah Pritchard said: “Public service naturally comes with greater scrutiny. But it must be proportionate and shouldn’t disadvantage people.”