Apple iPhone Sales Global Slump

 
Sales of iPhones have fallen in almost every market across the globe, according to the latest results from Apple. The technology giant said overall demand for its smartphones dropped by more than 10% in the first three months of this year, with sales falling in every geographic region except for Europe. Apple said that overall, revenues across the company declined by 4% to $90.8bn (£72.5bn), which was the biggest drop for more than a year. Nevertheless, the results were not as bad as expected and Apple's share price rose in after-hours trading in New York. The company said the figures were distorted by Covid-related supply disruptions, which led to unusually strong sales during the same period last year. It pledged that sales would return to growth in the months ahead, noting upcoming product launches and investments in artificial intelligence (AI). Competition in that market has been intensifying from local rivals such Huawei. Apple is also facing legal battles with regulators in the US and Europe over its app store fees.

iPhone Sales

Whitbread Cuts Jobs

 

Premier Inn owner Whitbread is to cut 1,500 jobs as it closes restaurants and expands its hotel business. It plans to cut its number of branded restaurants by more than 200 in favour of building more hotel rooms. The job cuts, which are subject to consultation, will come from a total UK workforce of 37,000 employees. The group's restaurant brands including Brewers Fayre and Beefeater. It plans to sell 126 of its less profitable restaurants, with 21 sales already having been agreed. It will also close 112 restaurants and convert the space into new hotel rooms. A spokesperson said that teams were being told about the cuts on Tuesday, and Whitbread would not say at this stage which restaurants were closing. Its catering brands also include Bar+Block, Thyme, Cookhouse+Pub, Table Table and Whitbread Inns. The food chains will be affected across the board, and closures will depend on where the restaurant is sited, rather than its brand. Whitbread said the changes would add more than 3,500 hotel rooms across its estate, and that the new hotel rooms would be served by unbranded restaurants. Dominic Paul, Whitbread's chief executive, said of the job cuts: "Sometimes businesses do need to make difficult decisions like this." However, he added: "I think we're doing it for absolutely the right reasons. It's going to support a material investment in this business and this country over the next few years." Referring to the job cuts, he said the decision was "really challenging for us. It's really important that we therefore handle that in the right way for our people." The moves are part of a three-year £150m cost-cutting programme.

Whitbread Job Cuts

Aldi Asked To Revise 'Ugly' Store

A decision on approving a new Aldi supermarket has been postponed after one councillor described the design as "ugly". The German chain wants to demolish a former car showroom in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, and build a two-storey shop. Buckinghamshire Council's planning committee voted to defer the application after a discussion that lasted nearly two hours. Elements of the plans which may now be revised include site deliveries, the external appearance of the building, and a right-hand turning lane into the site. The Local Democracy Reporting Service said some objectors questioned the need for another supermarket, given there is a Tesco superstore in Old Amersham and a Little Waitrose and M&S Simply Food in the town centre. However, John Catton, vice-chairman of the Amersham Society, a conservation and heritage group with 350 members, argued the town needed a new budget supermarket. He said the one proviso the society had was that Aldi’s proposed "blocky" building for London Road West should be more sympathetic to the area. Tesco has said the project would harm nearby Grade II listed buildings. More than 1,500 letters of support for the store had been received by the Conservative-controlled council, with only a couple dozen objections.

Ugly Aldi Shop

, external voted to defer the application after a discussion that lasted nearly two hoursElements of the plans which may now be revised include site deliveries, the external appearance of the building, and a right-hand turning lane into the site. 

Fuitella Drink Launch

 Drinks supplier Manchester Drinks Co is to launch a five-strong range of Fruitella branded drinks. Pouches in Orange, Strawberry, Blackcurrant & Apple, Summer Fruits and Cherry are to roll into 670 B&M stores from 29 April (rsp: 89p/300ml). The HFSS compliant ready-to-drink pouches contain less than 17 kcals per serving. Manchester Drinks Co was “thrilled to be working with such an iconic sweet brand as Fruittella”, said co-founder Richard Benjamin. “We believe the brand lends itself perfectly to a fruit juice drink,” he said. “All the lovers of the sweets can now refresh themselves with our range of RTD juice drinks.” The fruit juice pouches would “provide consumers with a convenient, delicious, and affordable way to enjoy their favourite fruit flavours”, according to Carla Fernández-Moreno, F&B manager at Fruitella brand owner Perfetti Van Melle.

Fruitella

The Robot Warehouse

Shoppers probably don't think much about what happens next when they place an online grocery order. But it sets-off an intricate dance of software, artificial intelligence, robots, vans and workers. At an Ocado warehouse just outside Luton, I'm in the middle of such a dance. As far as I can see, hundreds of robots whizz around a grid, fetching items for online orders. They move with dizzying speed and precision. In the early days of online shopping, when you placed an order, humans would dash around a warehouse or a store collecting your items. But for years now, Ocado has been using robots to collect and distribute products, bringing them to staff, who pack them into boxes for delivery. And Ocado is not the only firm investing in such automation. In its warehouses, Asda uses a system from Swiss automation firm Swisslog and Norway's AutoStore. In the US, Walmart has been automating parts of its supply chain using robotics from an American company called Symbotic. At Ocado around 100 engineers have spent years training the artificial intelligence (AI) to take on that task. The Luton warehouse has 44 robotic arms, which at the moment account for 15% of the products that flow through the facility, that's about 400,000 items a week. The rest are handled by staff at picking stations. The staff handle items that robots are not ready for yet, like wine bottles which are heavy and have curved surfaces, making them difficult to grasp. But the system is ramping up. The company is developing different attachments for the robot arms that will allow them to handle a wider variety of items. In two or three years Ocado expects the robots will account for 70% of the products. This inevitably means fewer human staff, but the Luton warehouse still has 1,400 staff, and many of those will still be needed in the future.

Robot Warehouse

Back To The Shops

Sainsbury's says shoppers are returning to its stores as the surge in online shopping seen during the Covid pandemic continues to unwind. The UK's second largest supermarket said online sales had been above 20% at the height of the pandemic, but are now back to about 13%. Its comments came as it reported strong food sales after spending heavily on keeping prices low to attract shoppers. However, other areas were weaker, with sales of clothing and fuel falling. The UK's second largest supermarket said its food business was "firing on all cylinders", with grocery sales growing by 9.4% over the past year. Chief executive Simon Roberts said that more than 87% of all food sold was done so "in a physical store". Supermarkets have been fighting hard for customers, with shoppers still feeling the effects of steep price rises over the past two years, which have ratcheted up the cost of living. Sainsbury's response has been to focus heavily on its food, which accounts for about three-quarters of its business, and it said it has spent £780m over the past three years on keeping prices low, including promotions such as Nectar prices and price-matching budget chain Aldi.

Back To The Shops

MPs Back Smoking Ban

MPs have backed a plan to ban anyone born after 2009 from buying cigarettes, effectively ensuring it will become law. The measures, championed by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, survived despite opposition from several leading Tory figures - including two ex-PMs. Health Secretary Victoria Atkins told MPs "there is no liberty in addiction" as she defended the plans. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill passed by 383 votes to 67. If they become law, the UK's smoking laws will be among the strictest in the world. The UK's approach is thought to have been inspired by a similar law in New Zealand, which was later repealed after a change in government. Tobacco use is the UK's single biggest preventable cause of death, killing two-thirds of long-term users and causing 80,000 deaths every year. The bill also aims to make vapes less appealing to children, with new restrictions on flavours and packaging. Trading standards officers would also get new powers to issue on-the-spot £100 fines to shops selling tobacco or vapes to children, with all the money raised going towards further enforcement.

Smoking Ban