Primani Plans Italy Stores

Primark is taking its own brand of high street chic to Milan, home to Versace, Prada and Armani and one of the world’s fashion capitals. The retailer – already nicknamed Primarni by fans – plans to open three stores in Italy within the next 12 months. The move comes as Primark revealed that its first US store, in Boston’s Downtown Crossing, will open in September. John Bason, finance director of Primark’s parent company Associated British Foods (ABF), said Primark already had stores in Germany, the UK, France and Spain, and that Italy was the logical next step. Primark’s own analysis has found Italy to be the second biggest potential market for the brand in the EU, behind only Germany.

Primark Debuts in Milan

Please Stop Here

A pub landlord has found an ingenious way to bring in drinkers – by installing his own bus stop outside. John Hawkridge, who bought the Gallipot Inn in Upper Hartfield, Sussex in 2013, said he had found a discarded bus sign in a hedge four miles up the road. He then erected outside his pub and slip a pub flyer in the slot where the timetable usually goes. Now his bus stop has become official with local bus company, Metrobus, replacing the flier with an official timetable and petitioning the local East Grinstead County Council to officially recognise it as part of the route. It has led to the pub doubling their takings in the past month.

Please Stop Here 

Cheetos Are Back

Walkers have brought back its popular snack brand Cheetos, to help boost sales for retailers. Available now, the range includes two single-serve packs of Cheetos Twisted and Cheetos Crunchy, pricemarked at 39p, along with a £1 sharing pac of Cheetos Twisted. Matt Goddard, head of sales said "We are really excited to continue our support for retailers with the launch of Cheetos in the UK, which we believe will help drive sales and with a '3 for £1' promotional flash which should encourage shoppers to increase basket spend.

Cheetos Are Back

Kreme Of The Crop

Shares in Krispy Kreme see their biggest rise in two years as revenues at the doughnut retailer jump 9%. Overall revenue was up 9.0% to $132.5m for the first quarter ending 3 May, with the bulk of this improvement being driven by its US stores. Sales at its US outlets climbed 5.2%, trouncing analyst expectations and sparking a buying frenzy for its shares. Krispy Kreme now operates 1,003 stores worldwide, up 17.3% against the same quarter last year. Boss Tony Thompson sees no signs of this growth slowing. He said: "Internationally we signed agreements in Cambodia, Guatemala, and South Africa as part of our goal to enter a total of six new countries this year."

Kreme of The Crop

Lidl Award

Lidl has been named Grocer of the Year for the first time at the Grocer Gold Awards, following year in which it shook up the supermarket industry, sparking a price war among the more established big four brands. Lidl, which originated in Germany and launched in the UK in 1994, still has a relatively small market share of 3.9 per cent. Lidl now has 620 stores across the UK. It invested £5.1 million on TV and press advertising in the four weeks to May 23, 320 per cent more than the same period last year, outstripping its nearest rival Asda with a £4.8 million spend.

Lidl Award

Apple Music

Apple has announced a new app that combines a streaming song and music video library, an internet radio station and a way for artists to share unreleased tracks and other material.The service is set to challenge Spotify, Tidal and other music apps. Apple also revealed that the UK will be the first country to get its Apple Pay service outside of the US. Apple said the service would launch in more than 100 countries on 30 June, and would cost $9.99 (£6.50) per month in the US for one person - the same as Spotify - or $14.99 for families containing up to six people.

Apple Music

Caffix - Eat Fresh, Pay Less

It's a rarity in London to spend anything less than £10 on lunch but a new cafe in posh Fitzrovia is bucking the trend of expensive lunches by pricing every single item at just a pound. Absolutely everything in Caffix including cakes, coffee, salads, sandwiches and drinks, are marked at the same price. And all the food served in the cafe is freshly made on the premises by kitchen staff, even the bread. Owner Mr. Kaye said 'It's perfectly possible we make a profit margin, albeit a lower profit margin, but we can still make money'. Mr.Kaye who has been in the food industry for seven years and owns a coffee shop in Finchley, hopes his novel idea could become the next rival to Starbucks. 

Caffix