Latest news with #BenLewis
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
River Island at risk of collapse as high street favourite takes drastic action
The company employs 5,500 people and has already started making redundancies River Island has appointed advisers from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to draw up a plan in a bid to save the company's 230 High Street branches. The clothing retailer, which employs 5,500 people, is taking action after reporting £32.2 million losses for 2023. PwC will draw up a formal restructuring plan in a bid to prevent the chain closing down, reports Sky. River Island has been part of the UK landscape since 1948. It was founded by Bernard Lewis and was originally called Lewis and Chelsea Girl. It is now run by CEO Ben Lewis, nephew of Bernard Lewis, who took over in February having previously held the post for 10 years before stepping down in 2019. The company has already made redundancies at its head office in London in departments including buying, merchandising and HR. In 2023, the company saw a 15 per cent drop in sales and a 19 per cent fall in turnover after making £7.5million profit in 2022. In its latest accounts, River Island Holdings Limited said: "The market for retailing of fashion clothing is fast changing with customer preferences for more diverse, convenient and speedier shopping journeys and with increasing competition especially in the digital space. "The key business risks for the group are the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment combined with increased economic uncertainty. "A number of geopolitical events have resulted in continuing supply chain disruption as well as energy, labour and food price increases, driving inflation and interest rates higher and resulting in weaker disposable income and lower consumer confidence." Bernard Leiws originally started his business as a fruit and veg stall in Notting Hill, using a site bombed during World War Two. It quickly became The Wool Shop then a chain of nine stores called Lewis Seperates with its first in-house designed clothes on sale from 1950. The chain rebranded as Chelsea Girl in 1970 and became River Island in 1988. It opened its first overseas branches in 1993 and was one of the first brands to start selling online.
Wales Online
3 days ago
- Business
- Wales Online
Huge fashion chain with 230 stores River Island at risk as it calls in help
Huge fashion chain with 230 stores River Island at risk as it calls in help The company has called in advisers to draw up a plan to save the business River Island clothing store shop River Island has appointed advisers from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to draw up a plan in a bid to save the company's 230 High Street branches. The clothing retailer, which employs 5,500 people, is taking action after reporting £32.2 million losses for 2023. PwC will draw up a formal restructuring plan in a bid to prevent the chain closing down., reports Sky. River Island has been part of the Uk landscape since 1948. It was founded by Bernard Lewis and was originally called Lewis and Chelsea Girl.l It is now run by CEO Ben Lewis, nephew of Bernard Lewis, who took over in February having previously held the post for 10 years before stepping down in 2019. The company has already m,ade redundancies at its head office in London in departments including buying, merchandising and HR. In 2023, the company saw a 15 per cent drop in sales and a 19 per cent fall in turnover after making £7.5million profit in 2022. In its latest accounts, River Island Holdings Limited said: "The market for retailing of fashion clothing is fast changing with customer preferences for more diverse, convenient and speedier shopping journeys and with increasing competition especially in the digital space. Article continues below "The key business risks for the group are the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment combined with increased economic uncertainty. "A number of geopolitical events have resulted in continuing supply chain disruption as well as energy, labour and food price increases, driving inflation and interest rates higher and resulting in weaker disposable income and lower consumer confidence." Bernard Leiws originally started his business as a fruit and veg stall in Notting Hill, using a site bo,mbed during World War Two. It quickly became The Wool Shop then a chain of nine stores called Lewis Seperates with its first in-house designed clothes on sale from 1950. Article continues below The chain rebranded as Chelsea Girl in 1970 and became River Island in 1988. It opened its first overseas branches in 1993 and was one of the first brands to start selling online.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Massive high street fashion chain puts dozens of stores and thousands of jobs at risk as bosses draw up company rescue plan
A huge fashion brand that is a high street staple across the UK is putting dozens of stores and thousands of jobs at risk as desperate bosses rush to draw up a rescue plan for the struggling firm. The clothing retailer, which has 230 shops and employs around 5,500 people, is taking the step after latest figures showed it suffered a £32.2 million loss in 2023. River Island has now called in advisers from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to devise a formal restructuring plan to stop the business going bust. Proposals for a rescue plan are set to be finalised within weeks, Sky reports, although sources at the company say any key decisions about its future are yet to be taken. River Island was originally named Lewis and Chelsea Girl after being founded in 1948 by Bernard Lewis, before changing its brand name four decades later. It is now headed up by CEO Ben Lewis, the nephew of its founder, who took over his second stint as the head of the family firm in February. He previously held the position for almost a decade before stepping down in 2019. In January, the firm introduced a redundancy programme at its London head office in a bid to save money in the context of increasingly pressured finances. The job cuts affected a range of employees across buying, merchandising and HR, but the total number of losses was not confirmed by the retailer. Company accounts showed the company was £33.2 million in the red for the 12 months to December 30, 2023. It also suffered a 15 percent decline in sales and a 19 percent fall in turnover. The year before, River Island had a total profit of £7.5 million. Any restructuring plan will be a court-supervised process that enables a company facing financial difficulties to compromise creditors such as landlords to avoid going bust. It is currently unknown how many stores and jobs would be at risk under the plan. In its latest accounts on Companies House, River Island Holdings Limited said: 'The market for retailing of fashion clothing is fast changing with customer preferences for more diverse, convenient and speedier shopping journeys and with increasing competition especially in the digital space. 'The key business risks for the group are the pressures of a highly competitive and changing retail environment combined with increased economic uncertainty. 'A number of geopolitical events have resulted in continuing supply chain disruption as well as energy, labour and food price increases, driving inflation and interest rates higher and resulting in weaker disposable income and lower consumer confidence.'
Miami Herald
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Chinese Bombers Seen in South China Sea Amid US Aircraft Carrier Patrol
China has reportedly deployed bombers to an island outpost in the South China Sea as a United States nuclear-powered aircraft carrier returns to the contested region. Newsweek has contacted the Chinese defense and foreign ministries for comment by email. China has asserted sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, with territorial claims that overlap those of neighboring countries. Beijing has strengthened its presence in the region by building military facilities-including runways and hangars-on islands under its control. The U.S. military and its allies have been operating in the South China Sea to uphold what they call "freedom of navigation and overflight." USS Nimitz-the oldest American aircraft carrier in service-returned to the South China Sea on Monday after transiting the Strait of Malacca. Citing satellite imagery provided by Maxar Technologies, Reuters reported on Wednesday that two Chinese H-6 bombers were spotted at an airfield on Woody Island on May 19. The island forms part of the Paracel Islands, located southeast of China's southern Hainan Island. Ben Lewis, founder of the open-source data platform PLATracker, told the news agency that the Chinese bombers were likely sent to the remote South China Sea island on a rotational basis, providing a "force protection mechanism" for the Chinese military in the region. It remains unclear which variant of the H-6 was deployed. In its report on Chinese military power last year, the Pentagon stated that China has fielded greater numbers of H-6K bombers, a modernized H-6 variant capable of launching supersonic missiles at warships. Woody Island has undergone land reclamation to expand its size and allow the construction of military facilities, including an air base with 20 hangars for combat aircraft, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. Meanwhile, officially released photos show that the Nimitz was underway at an undisclosed location in the South China Sea on Tuesday, with a photo caption stating that the aircraft carrier was demonstrating the U.S. Navy's commitment to "a free and open Indo-Pacific." Further east, the U.S. Air Force deployed an unspecified number of B-52H bombers to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam on May 19, where they are supporting what the Pacific Air Forces called "strategic deterrence missions" in the Indo-Pacific region. The Pentagon's Chinese military power report reads: "[People's Republic of China]'s outposts in the [South China Sea] extend the operating reach of [People's Liberation Army] aviation forces. In 2023, [People's Republic of China] media released videos of J-11 fighters operating from Woody Island carrying out surveillance and response missions." Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on May 8: "The current situation in the South China Sea is generally stable…China firmly safeguards its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, and works with other countries in the region to uphold peace and stability in the South China Sea." It remains to be seen whether the Chinese military will conduct bomber exercises in the South China Sea while the Nimitz is deployed in the contested region. Related Articles How China Became the World's Largest Debt CollectorChina Learns New Lessons From Russia-Ukraine War: ReportChina Responds to Latest Trump Visa Move: 'US Lie'Satellite Imagery Captures Chinese Aircraft Carrier in Contested Waters 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Newsweek
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Chinese Bombers Seen in South China Sea Amid US Aircraft Carrier Patrol
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. China has reportedly deployed bombers to an island outpost in the South China Sea as a United States nuclear-powered aircraft carrier returns to the contested region. Newsweek has contacted the Chinese defense and foreign ministries for comment by email. Why It Matters China has asserted sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, with territorial claims that overlap those of neighboring countries. Beijing has strengthened its presence in the region by building military facilities—including runways and hangars—on islands under its control. The U.S. military and its allies have been operating in the South China Sea to uphold what they call "freedom of navigation and overflight." USS Nimitz—the oldest American aircraft carrier in service—returned to the South China Sea on Monday after transiting the Strait of Malacca. What To Know Citing satellite imagery provided by Maxar Technologies, Reuters reported on Wednesday that two Chinese H-6 bombers were spotted at an airfield on Woody Island on May 19. The island forms part of the Paracel Islands, located southeast of China's southern Hainan Island. A Chinese H-6K bomber is seen during the 15th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai in China's Guangdong province on November 14, 2024. A Chinese H-6K bomber is seen during the 15th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai in China's Guangdong province on November 14, 2024. HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images Ben Lewis, founder of the open-source data platform PLATracker, told the news agency that the Chinese bombers were likely sent to the remote South China Sea island on a rotational basis, providing a "force protection mechanism" for the Chinese military in the region. It remains unclear which variant of the H-6 was deployed. In its report on Chinese military power last year, the Pentagon stated that China has fielded greater numbers of H-6K bombers, a modernized H-6 variant capable of launching supersonic missiles at warships. The ability to cycle forces through the bases, especially higher level assets like the H-6, provides the PLA with a force protection mechanism - my views in this piece with @GregTorode as we explore the PLA's recent deployment of bombers to the SCShttps:// — Ben Lewis 🇺🇦 (@OfficialBen_L) May 28, 2025 Woody Island has undergone land reclamation to expand its size and allow the construction of military facilities, including an air base with 20 hangars for combat aircraft, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. Meanwhile, officially released photos show that the Nimitz was underway at an undisclosed location in the South China Sea on Tuesday, with a photo caption stating that the aircraft carrier was demonstrating the U.S. Navy's commitment to "a free and open Indo-Pacific." United States Navy pilots walk across the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the South China Sea on May 27, 2025. United States Navy pilots walk across the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the South China Sea on May 27, 2025. Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Hannah Kantner/U.S. Navy Further east, the U.S. Air Force deployed an unspecified number of B-52H bombers to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam on May 19, where they are supporting what the Pacific Air Forces called "strategic deterrence missions" in the Indo-Pacific region. What People Are Saying The Pentagon's Chinese military power report reads: "[People's Republic of China]'s outposts in the [South China Sea] extend the operating reach of [People's Liberation Army] aviation forces. In 2023, [People's Republic of China] media released videos of J-11 fighters operating from Woody Island carrying out surveillance and response missions." Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on May 8: "The current situation in the South China Sea is generally stable…China firmly safeguards its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, and works with other countries in the region to uphold peace and stability in the South China Sea." What Happens Next It remains to be seen whether the Chinese military will conduct bomber exercises in the South China Sea while the Nimitz is deployed in the contested region.
