Business

Royal Mail has urged small and medium-sized businesses to apply for its £1 million apprenticeship levy fund during National Apprenticeship Week (9–15 February), as it steps up efforts to help address skills shortages across the SME sector. Applications are open for the second round of the fund, which is available to businesses with up to 250 employees that sell products online. The funding can be used for any government-accredited apprenticeship, spanning areas from industry-specific roles...

Tesco is pressing ahead with a major expansion of its convenience estate after buying a number of former Amazon Fresh stores in London. Britain’s largest supermarket group plans to open more than 70 new Tesco Express outlets by March 2027, building on the 60 convenience stores it opened last year. The retailer already operates just over 2,000 convenience shops across the UK and Ireland as it seeks to capture a greater share of everyday, top-up...

The UK government must overhaul its approach to public sector procurement if it is serious about backing British innovation, according to Justin Megawarne, managing partner at Megaslice, who has accused Whitehall of hiding behind rigid frameworks and “arbitrary scoring systems”. Megawarne’s comments follow the decision to award Fujitsu a place on a government framework worth up to £984 million, despite the company’s central role in developing and supporting the Post Office Horizon IT system. The...

NatWest has agreed a £2.7 billion deal to acquire Evelyn Partners in its largest corporate takeover since the banking group was rescued by taxpayers during the financial crisis, and its most significant acquisition since returning to full private ownership. The purchase of the wealth manager from private equity firms Permira and Warburg Pincus, combined with NatWest’s existing Coutts franchise, will create the UK’s largest private banking and wealth management business. The enlarged group will oversee...

The growing use of weight-loss injections could dent demand for sausage rolls and pastries at Greggs, potentially depriving the bakery chain of some of its most lucrative customers, according to City analysts. The warning comes as Greggs continues to grapple with slower sales growth since mid-2024, a period that has prompted investor speculation over whether the UK has reached “peak Greggs”. The company has attributed its softer performance to fragile consumer confidence and last summer’s...

As artificial intelligence continues to redefine how information is created, summarized, and distributed, news organizations face one of the most significant structural challenges in modern media history. Search engines increasingly rely on AI-generated responses, social platforms prioritize algorithmic summaries, and audiences often encounter journalism through fragments rather than full articles. At the center of this transformation is Dev Pragad, President, Chief Executive Officer, and co-owner of Newsweek, who has emerged as one of the most...

We are now in a time of manufacturing where precision is more than a technical necessity; it’s a business requirement. The more complex, globally dispersed and demanding things get, the less slack remains in the system. Under these circumstances tolerance management has become a decisive competence and affects competitiveness not only in terms of controlling costs, ensuring quality and improving production efficiency but also for long term market success. What once was a niche engineering problem tolerance management...

If you’ve ever tried to get a home “handover ready,” you’ll know the difference between a normal tidy-up and a proper, tenancy-level clean. It’s not just about making things look presentable—it’s about resetting a property so it feels fresh, hygienic, and genuinely cared for. That matters whether you’re moving out, preparing a rental, selling, or simply trying to protect the value of your home. For many homeowners, the quickest route to that standard is bringing...

The School of Coding & AI (SoC) has taken a massive step in its bid to announce itself on the global stage. The United Kingdom-based artificial intelligence (AI) provider and coding education firm is moving ahead with plans to build a £3 million facility in Dubai. This move is a reflection of the Middle East’s digital ambitions and the international demand for advanced technical skills. SoC is a respected industry-focused education provider in Britain and...

When standard solutions start holding you back, it might be time to think about something built for your business. Most UK businesses start with off-the-shelf software. Makes sense. Tools like Xero, Salesforce or Monday.com are affordable, quick to deploy, and cover the basics well. For early-stage companies focused on survival and growth, these ready-made solutions provide what you need without a big upfront investment. But as your company grows and your processes get more sophisticated,...