this week the team at THird Bridge take a look at Yorkshire-based Morrisons, luxury car brand ROlls ROyce, Pharmacet Analyst Ross Hindle comments on WM Morrisons: "The retailer had a strong Q1 with Group like-for-like (LFL) sales (ex-fuel/ex-VAT) up 2.7% y/y, a beat on consensus." "There is a big question mark over…

The amount of time we have all spent online has increased dramatically over the past year but for children who had to swap the classroom for remote learning and replace playing with friends with online gaming, the change was particularly acute. As we now get used to the new norm, parents…

As employees across the UK return to the workplace following a year of remote working, new research indicates the ongoing shift back to offices may significantly disrupt workers’ sleeping patterns and wider wellbeing. The Global Working From Home Survey, commissioned by employee wellbeing specialist WRKIT, found that UK workers are…

ilumoni, the start-up app that aims to help people to borrow well, has raised £1.2m in an over-subscribed seed funding round after successfully launching in Beta earlier this year. The purpose-led, AI-driven fintech had previously raised £455,000 in pre-seed funding, which saw the initial build of the first version of the…

The Institute of Directors has today published a landmark report, A Trade Policy Roadmap – Sweden, EU and the UK, setting out a roadmap for cooperation between the UK and EU on a positive long-term global trade agenda. Jointly commissioned by the IoD and the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, the report…

Temperature controlled food storage and distribution businesses, Reed Boardall, has completed a 12 month multi-million pound project to further expand its dedicated, single site operation in North Yorkshire, once again making it the most extensive and modern cold storage facility in the country. As volumes through the company’s cold store and…

As economies seek to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the B7 summit of business federations from the G7 countries have made a series of recommendations to Prime Minister Boris Johnson to take forward at next month’s summit. The B7 have agreed seven critical areas where business and governments worldwide can work…

NPIF - Maven Equity Finance has invested over £7m in dynamic growth businesses across the Northern Powerhouse region in quarter one of 2021. A milestone for the fund, Maven has completed 17 transactions investing in 7 new businesses and supporting 10 portfolio companies in the last 3 months. Appointed by the…

Commenting on GDP figures for Q1 2021, published today by the ONS, showing the economy shrunk by 1.5% in Q1 2021,Suren Thiru, Head of Economics at the British Chambers of Commerce(BCC), said:  “While the UK economy contracted in the first quarter, the downbeat headline figure masks a renewed momentum through…

Matthew Fell, CBI Chief UK Policy Director, commented: “Business shares the Government’s ambition to turbocharge the UK’s recovery post-pandemic and reset the economy. The Queen’s Speech provides the building blocks for a decade of transformation and inclusive economic growth. “It’s right that the golden thread in this legislative agenda is…

A Yorkshire-based global business that helps soft drinks manufacturers maintain the fizz in their beverages for longer is expanding operations to meet rising demand from Latin and South American countries. Located in Horsforth, CO2 Sustain LTD, makers of patented liquid foam control and carbonation aid, CO2Sustain, has almost trebled output to…

The North West is a region rich in high-growth business and future industries. It must build on these strengths to increase productivity, which ranks below the national average (fourth out of nine English regions) and is losing ground. Tackling high levels of deprivation and low innovation and R&D spending can…

Following IAG's Q1 results announcement Jack Winchester, Analyst at Third Bridge, said: “IAG’s seating capacity over the last three months was just one fifth of 2019 levels, and it expects to increase that to 25% of 2019 levels in Q2. This will increase cash costs per week from 175 million Euros…

Justin Augat, Vice-President of Marketing at iland says that On World Password Day, it’s important to reinforce strong password hygiene — a critical component to data security, but one that merely scratches the surface. Let’s start someplace you might not expect: At the “Doors of Durin”. For those who lack…

Doncaster homebuilder Keepmoat Homes delivered “a resilient financial and operational performance against a backdrop of significant disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.” The company reported revenues of £406m in its financial results for the year ended 31 October 2020, (12 months to 31 October 2019: £649.8m). The housebuilder’s adjusted earnings before interest…

A major new report is calling for a root and branch reform of the UK’s training system to help businesses access the skills they need to boost productivity. The final report from the Workplace Training and Development Commission (WTDC), set up by the British Chambers of Commerce…

A new car seat cover has been designed to address the problem of plastic waste from car accessories. Josh Hanning set up automotive accessories company, Hanubu, at the start of the first 2020 lockdown. The 36 year old couldn’t understand why the car accessories market was still flooded with products…

Acuant, the global trusted identity platform for fraud prevention and AML compliance, today announced the completion of the acquisition of Hello Soda as part of its continued investment and commitment to innovative technology. Hello Soda is a global provider of identity verification and KYC solutions headquartered in the UK…

SME manufacturing output held flat in the three months to April but is expected to improve markedly in the coming quarter, according to the CBI’s quarterly SME Trends Survey.   {{“But not all is rosy: companies clearly remain under the cosh, with cost pressures mounting and raw materials shortages persisting thanks to COVID-related supply…