PRESS DIGEST - British business - Aug 9

Mail on Sunday

CURRYS SHAPES UP FOR BIG ASSAULT

Electrical appliance retailer Currys is to embark on a strategy to beat its rivals by improving its approach to service and deliveries. The plan includes shorter time slots for deliveries, drivers trained to install appliances and the immediate removal and disposal of customers' old appliances. The push will be launched with a ten million pound advertising campaign, which will be the "biggest-ever single investment in the Currys brand". The move is being implemented after almost two years of work by chief executive John Browett.

BREAD PROVING TO BE A WINNER IN HARD TIMES

Baking group Warburtons saw a significant increase in profits last year despite higher costs, indicating that consumers are returning to more basic foods during the recession. Pre-tax profits for the 12 months to September 27, 2008 climbed from 26.3 million pounds to 31.8 million pounds on turnover of 498 million pounds, up from 414 million pounds. The group is using much of the profits to open new baking plants in Bristol, Wakefield and Stockton-on-Tees. Chairman Jonathon Warburton plans to further boost market share.

NEW DIRECTOR FOR TOWERGATE

Towergate, Europe's biggest private insurance group, has appointed a managing director from U.S. hedge fund Och-Ziff Capital Management to its board. The decision to appoint Andrew Land as non-executive director will increase Och-Ziff's influence over Towergate. The hedge fund owns a minority stake in the insurer, while the remainder is owned by founder Peter Cullum and the rest of the board. A Towergate spokesman said the group had already been working closely with Land as a shareholder and looked forward to continuing to benefit from his experience.

The Sunday Telegraph

BIDDERS GUN FOR ROYAL BERKSHIRE

Royal Berkshire Shooting School has called in Cavendish Corporate Finance to conduct a strategic review after it received approaches regarding a 10 million pound sale. The identity of the bidders remains unclear, but Purdey, the shotgun maker owned by luxury goods group LVMH (LVMH.PA), and Holland & Holland, owned by Richemont (CFR.VX), are seen as likely suitors. The news comes at a good time for the owners of the country pursuits and clothing company given the start of the grouse shooting season on the Glorious 12 next week.

NEW CHIEF FOR VERTEX

Paul Sweeny, global managing director at IBM financial services, has been appointed by Vertex as its new chief executive. He will commence his new duties on Monday and is expected to spearhead the company's ambitious growth plans in the core markets of the UK, India and North America. The news will be seen as a coup for the multinational outsourcing group which has been looking for a successor for the previous chief executive Richard Graham for almost a year. Sweeny said: "Vertex is a forward-looking business that is a leader in the industry. I am looking forward to leading this next, exciting chapter in its growth."

The Sunday Times

OXFORD NETS 100 MILLION POUNDS

Oxford University Press is in the enviable position of having been largely unaffected by the recession, leading the company to virtually double its dividend payment to the university to 100.7 million pounds. The charity, a department of Oxford University, enjoyed a six percent rise in profits for 2008 to 88.7 million pounds. The fact that OUP was only required to pay 4.3 million pounds in tax last year due to its charitable status has upset rivals. Although flattered by the weakness of sterling against the dollar, sales were up 18 percent to 578.7 million.

FIRST GROUP STEERS GREYHOUND TO NEW HORIZONS

First Group will launch a Greyhound coach service from London next month, two years after purchasing the iconic U.S. company. Routes will cover cities within a two-and-a-half hour drive from London, with a small number of coaches making the initial journeys. First Group is expected to style the service around Greyhound's U.S. division, Bolt Bus, aiming to attract younger passengers with low fares starting at one pound and wifi on board its coaches.

The Independent on Sunday

UK COAL SEEKS LENDER TO JOIN GE AND LLOYDS

Listed mining giant UK Coal (UKC.L) is in talks with its backers over its overdraft-like 52 million pound "revolver" facility, following the news that one of the three backing banks, recently nationalised Icelandic bank Landsbanki, is going to pull out in 2010. UK Coal is seeking a third backer to join Lloyds Banking Group and GE, and hopefully also to raise the facility to 70 million pounds. UK Coal's market capitalisation has fallen to 220 million pounds, placing it outside the FTSE-250, due to its property portfolio decreasing in value during the housing slump, although new contracts negotiated in April with customers such as E.On and EDF Energy will generate 100 million pounds in cashflow which will be used to develop mines. The company's shares fell 1.24 percent on Friday to close at 139.75 pence.

HOLIDAY HITCH-UP: SAGA TO BUY CUT-PRICE TITAN TRAVEL

British travel agent Titan Travel is to be bought by over-50s holiday company Saga, backed by private equity firms Permira, Charterhouse and CVC. The sale, handled by insolvency specialists Begbies Traynor's corporate finance arm McInnes, is expected to cost Saga up to 20 million pounds. Despite having a turnover of over 131 million pounds in the year ending September 2007, the firm's profit was just 211,144 pounds over the same period. Titan, which offers a wide range of holidays worldwide, owns a minibus fleet and last year sealed a deal with National Geographic to sell holidays through its flagship London store.

VANDYK EXPECTED TO CONTINUE ASTAIRE SPENDING SPREE...

Edward Vandyk, chief executive of City stockbroker Astaire Securities, is understood to be about make an offer for rival broker Daniel Steward. Astaire, known as Blue Oar until June, has previously bought Dowgate, St Helen's Capital and Ruegg & Co. Blue Oar lost 16.1 million pounds last year, compared to a profit of 1.9 million pounds in the previous year, while Daniel Stewart posted losses of two million pounds in 2008, with losses of 4.4 million pounds in 2007.

The Observer

DEFIANT CASH LEADS BUYOUT OF MAGAZINE FOR THE VERY RICH

William Cash is leading a management buyout of Spear's, the lifestyle magazine for the super-rich he founded a few years back. The entrepreneur, who is also the glossy publication's editor-in-chief, will take a 67 percent stake in the business while private equity firm Nectar Capital will hold the remaining 33 percent. No figures were revealed for the buyout. Cash described the financial crisis as an opportunity, adding that he planned to expand into book publishing and on the Internet. Spear's unofficially audited circulation is just under 30,000 copies, including 10,000 distributed in British Airways' first class lounges.

DEADLINE LOOMS FOR AVIVA VOTE

With-profits policyholders at Aviva (AV.L) have 11 days to decide whether they will accept a tax-free payout from the insurance company. The money is an offer to relinquish any future claim from the 1.4 billion pounds surplus in its with-profits funds. The payout will be worth 500 million pounds, after being halved by the company in May in the light of a stockmarket plunge. The insurer estimates 95 percent of all policyholders would have to wait 20 years before receiving special bonuses equivalent in value to the money offered now.

Prepared for Reuters by Durrants