Latest news with #Barr
The Herald Scotland
7 hours ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Irn-Bru buys majority stake in former Wales striker's firm
The purchase of the majority stake in Innate-Essence is the latest diversification by Barr beyond its core fizzy drinks specialism, with Innate-Essence joining a portfolio which includes MOMA oat milk and Funkin, the cocktail puree and ready-to-drink brand. The Barr portfolio was also expanded with the acquisition of energy drinks Boost in a deal worth up to £32m in December 2022. However, the company took the decision to axe its Strathmore bottled water brand in March this year. It announced today that it has concluded the sale of the Strathmore brand and the Forfar production site to Ty Nant, 'negatively impacting revenue in the short-term but not profit'. A filing at Companies House shows that AG Barr chief executive Euan Sutherland and finance chief Stuart Lorimer were appointed directors of Innate-Essence earlier this month. Read more: Barr noted today that the deal for Innate-Essence was 'consistent with the company's strategy of acquisitions and innovation in high growth, health focused, functional beverage categories', adding: 'The investment has been funded from the company's net cash position. It is not expected to have a significant impact on revenue or profit in the current financial year.' The deal was announced as Barr signalled that it expects revenue to increase by around 3% to in the region of £228 million in the first half, with adjusted operating margin to be ahead of last year at 15% versus 13%. It anticipates the margin improvement will be driven by 'improved manufacturing efficiencies, ongoing benefits from our strategic business improvement initiatives and continued disciplined cost management'. Barr noted that momentum had increased as the period progressed, with several record volume weeks reported in the second quarter. It said brand performance was led by Boost, which delivered double-digit percentage growth. Sales of Irn-Bru and fruit juice brand Rubicon were flat in the first half, with a stronger performance in the second quarter, while growth in the off-trade for Funkin helped to mitigate challenges in the on-trade. Mulling the outlook, the company made no changes to its revenue and profit expectations for the full-year. Mr Sutherland said: "We are pleased to report continued revenue growth and strong profit growth in the first half of the financial year. Trading improved during H1, and we enter H2 with strong momentum and continued progress on margin improvement as our strategic initiatives continue to deliver. I am also excited about our expansion into the functional beverage segment working alongside Thomas Robson-Kanu and the Innate-Essence team. Our full year guidance remains unchanged and in line with market expectations." Analysts at Shore Capital reiterated their expectations for the company to deliver an adjusted pre-tax profit of £65m for the full year. Barr said: 'We have made excellent progress with operating margin during H1 and expect to deliver a full year result in line with expectations after taking into account a planned higher level of marketing activity in H2.' Shares in AG Barr closed down 2.16%, or 15p, at 680p.
Scotsman
13 hours ago
- Business
- Scotsman
Irn-Bru maker AG Barr buys health shots firm for £15m after selling Scottish business
'I am also excited about our expansion into the functional beverage segment' – Euan Sutherland, chief executive Sign up to our Scotsman Money newsletter, covering all you need to know to help manage your money. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Irn-Bru maker AG Barr has spent £15 million snapping up a majority stake in a top brand in the 'functional shots' market after concluding the sale of the Strathmore bottled water business. The iconic soft drinks maker said it had acquired a 50.1 per cent equity stake in Innate-Essence, the home of The Turmeric Co, which is also behind a number of other speciality health drinks. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Bosses said the move was consistent with the company's strategy of targeting 'acquisitions and innovation in high growth, health focused, functional beverage categories'. The deal has been funded from the group's cash funds. It is not expected to have a significant impact on revenue or profit in the current financial year, Barr added. AG Barr is best known as the maker of Irn-Bru, often referred to as 'Scotland's other national drink'. The firm has also concluded the sale of the Strathmore brand and the Forfar production site to Tŷ Nant, 'negatively impacting' revenue in the short-term but not profit. In March, Barr announced plans to 'discontinue' its Strathmore bottled water brand and seek a potential buyer. News of the Innate-Essence acquisition came as Cumbernauld-headquartered Barr issued a trading update, revealing that first-half revenue is expected to be in the region of £228m, up about 3 per cent on the year before. Overall, trading momentum increased as the first half progressed, with several record volume weeks in the second quarter. Brand revenue performance was led by Boost which delivered strong double-digit growth. Irn-Bru and Rubicon were flat in the half-year period, with a stronger performance in Q2. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The group's revenue and profit growth expectations for the full year are unchanged. Chief executive Euan Sutherland told investors: 'We are pleased to report continued revenue growth and strong profit growth in the first half of the financial year.
Gulf Today
5 days ago
- Health
- Gulf Today
I keep waking up at 4am. Is it stress, or something else?
Charlotte Cripps, The Independent Why do I randomly wake up at the same time each night? It's always 4am on the dot. I'm starting to wonder if it has some special significance – beyond sheer annoyance. I've tried eyemasks. Relaxation techniques. Electrolyte sachets with added magnesium. Nothing works. Every night: 4am. A 2021 study titled The Different Faces of Insomnia found that 40 per cent of us experience early morning waking, and have trouble falling back to sleep again. The typical reasons trotted out often include the insomnia, stress, ageing, medications, diet, and pain. But, lying awake in the quiet of the night researching my problem, I come across another, altogether more exotic explanation: the spirit world. According to folklore, the 'witching hour', variably said to be between midnight and 4am, is when the veil between the living and the spirit world is believed to be paper-thin, making communication with spirits easier; waking up signals that you are spiritually in tune. It may, if you believe such things, indicate astral travel — the soul returning to the body after traversing other universes. My penchant for 4am rousings might mean that spirit guides are sending important messages, or guiding me towards my destiny. In desperation, I decided to look into the woo-woo rationale behind these claims, as well as the more scientific explanations, in the hope I might find a solution. If that means accepting that a guardian angel is trying to alert me to important news, or that my racing mind is egged on by an overactive third eye chakra, then so be it. I don't want to knock myself out with sleeping pills — or scroll the news headlines on my phone at dawn. A-list acupuncturist Ross Barr, who runs sessions out of Claridge's Spa, has a client list that includes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, both of whom had regular appointments with him as part of their pre-wedding wellness routine. Repeatedly waking at a particular time, Barr tells me, has huge significance. 'It is rarely random. Eastern medicine figured out long ago,' he says. 'It's often a clue pointing to a possible imbalance in a specific organ or an underlying emotional cause.' According to the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) organ clock, each three-hour window is linked to a different organ system. Waking at 1am to 3am, Barr tells me, is liver time. 'It's often associated with internal heat, frustration, stress, or alcohol,' he says. Waking between 3am and 5am, meanwhile, signals issues with the lungs. '(It's) more about grief and loss, or typical lung pathology like asthma.' But waking too early before your alarm can also suggest that you're running on adrenaline, he says. 'It's like your body is bracing for something, as if it's trying to get ahead of danger or the day itself.' Others believe that imbalanced chakras — energy centres thought to govern different physical and emotional functions — are the culprit. The third eye, which is related to intuition and sleep regulation, and root chakra, associated with feelings of security and grounding, are often linked with sleep disturbances like insomnia or restless sleep. 'At around 4am, the throat and the heart chakras are functioning at their strongest,' says Padma Coram, a spiritual and integrative lifestyle and wellness expert at London's Hale Clinic. She claims that if the seven chakras are not flowing freely along the spine, from the base to the crown of the head, the body wakes up to alert you to fix the problem. 'It's not just sleep disturbance — it's the soul gently tapping or knocking. The body is trying to get your attention through the subconscious.' In my case, she says, waking at 4am repeatedly could mean there's unspoken emotion, suppressed grief, or a truth that needs to be expressed. She advises facing problems head-on. 'We either want to stick our heads under the sand, we get irritable, angry and highly strung, or want to go out to get distracted,' she says, 'but it's important to voice our concerns even if it's just to ourselves, so that the mind and body can process them.'
Daily Record
6 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Gartcairn's final pre-season clash comes at a cost ahead of Whitletts opener
The Airdrie side are gearing up for the West of Scotland First Division Gartcairn co-boss Darren Barr was happy to end pre-season on a winning note but admits it came at a cost ahead of Saturday's West of Scotland First Division opener at Whitletts Victoria. The Airdrie-based outfit ran out 2-1 winners away to East of Scotland Premier champions Musselburgh Athletic at the weekend, with Dom Morgan and Stefan McCluskey on target. But Barr's side finished the game with 10 men after left-back Jordan Allan was shown a straight red card, while Kyle Hutton is facing a fitness test after picking up a knock. Barr said: 'The boys put in a really good performance on the eve of the season starting, so it gives them a bit of belief because Musselburgh are a good team and they did really well last year, winning their league. We had a really good 60-65 minutes. 'There's a few people that were still on holiday and some injuries to contend with. Kyle Hutton took a sore one so we will need to see how he is as the week progresses and we had a man sent off as well, so those two things put a bit of a dampener on it a bit.' Gartcairn are among the favourites for the title having been relegated from the top flight last season, but Barr is sure his players can handle that expectation. He added: 'Looking at the squad, we are in decent place and we are still building. Pre-season is all about getting minutes in the legs and get the partnerships going, working cohesively, so Saturday was a good step towards that. 'Pressure of being one of the favourites is fine. You've obviously got Darvel in there and a few others, so I think it is going to be a really strong league. 'Some people might have us as favourites but there are plenty of other strong sides in there. 'We'd love a winning start but I'd rather have a strong finish to the season, that is the most important thing. 'The boys know the pressure on them, but all we'll do is take it one game at a time and focus on the way we want to play. 'With the quality in the squad we know we can compete.' On the Whitletts clash, he added: 'I'm expecting a really tough match. We've watched Whitletts a couple of times and they will give us a really hard first game. 'It is about how we approach it and we will prepare them as best we can. Hopefully we can get off to a positive start.'
Fox News
21-07-2025
- General
- Fox News
Popular beach town brings Sunday Mass to shore so faithful don't miss sermon or surf
The faithful are bringing the Good Word beyond church walls by hitting the beaches this summer. Beach Catholic of Long Island, New York, consists of three parishes that host Mass near the sea every Sunday. (See the video at the top of this article.) Over 1,000 people have attended the service per week since the group first began in 2014. Jordan Bernhardi, Beach Catholic director of operations, told Fox News Digital he predicts more than 50,000 people have attended the Masses over the last decade. "It is a powerful public witness of faith that draws Catholics from all over Long Island, with some even coming from New York City," he said. "There is something so powerful about hundreds of Catholics, kneeling before their King and receiving Him in the Eucharist, at the beach." He added, "As our new holy father, Pope Leo XIV, has said, we are called to be a missionary church. In a culture that needs Jesus now, maybe more than ever before, we believe that the answer is to bring Him out." The Masses are spread across three different beaches on Long Island and three parishes – St. Ignatius Martyr, St. Mary of The Isle, and Our Lady of The Miraculous Medal. "We believe that the answer is to bring Him out." Fr. Brian Barr, pastor of Beach Catholic, told Fox News Digital that faith is not intended to be contained within four walls. "When you were a kid, do you remember being uneasy or embarrassed about expressing your faith in front of others? I do. I think most people do," said Barr. "We shouldn't be that way." "But for whatever reason, many of us are. Bringing the Eucharist, which is our most important prayer, to the streets (and the beach), challenges that fear in a great way," Barr added. "Like most things that scare us, the more you confront them, the quicker you conquer them." Fox News Digital was on hand at a recent Sunday beach Mass to ask attendees what the service means to them. Attendee Tim Murphy said he's been attending the service every summer since it began. "Every week we still make the trip to come down and it's worth the trip if you have never been," said Murphy. "My wife and I actually met here because of the beach Mass, and so my son would not be born without the beach Mass." He says attending the Mass has been life-changing for him. "Having this many people come together and celebrate outside on the beach is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he said. "People passing along on the boardwalk, getting to stop and hear the Word of God — it's an incredible experience, and you should really join us at some point this year." Dee Santos told Fox News Digital that every week is a special moment, and she saw 1,200 people attend last week to receive communion. "What I love is, first of all, we have this beautiful gift from God of the beach, and we get to celebrate His gifts to us in His presence on the beach," said Santos. "The other piece of it that's so wonderful is it brings people in who maybe wouldn't even see us worshipping. It brings people off the boardwalk, off the beach," said Santos. "Last week we had someone who wanted to know what was going on. And we said, 'We're going to have Mass here.'" She said the man decided to stay and partake in Mass. "It's also really nice to bring in other voices from the church, hear about what's going on across the Barrier Island, and really get to celebrate being Catholic and worshipping together," said Santos.
