The outgoing chair of John Lewis has said the firm is “underrepresented in convenience” as it aims to answer the growing customer need for localised, more convenient shopping.

Sharon White, who will retire from the John Lewis Partnership (JLP) this September, confirmed that convenience is now a priority for the company, and that a “bigger presence” for its John Lewis and Waitrose brands is needed within the sector.

White’s replacement will be the ex-CEO of Tesco, Jason Tarry. As head of the retail titan, Tarry was previously responsible for one of the UK’s largest convenience store footprints.

Big plans for Little Waitrose

JLP, which has its own ‘Little Waitrose’ small shop format, targeted the convenience sector last year, when it partnered with Uber Eats to enable on-demand grocery deliveries.

In March, executive director James Bailey then confirmed Waitrose was planning to open its first new stores in over a decade as part of the move. He said he was “confident that we’ll be announcing [new] shops, especially Little Waitrose”.

It’s an industry that Tarry already has experience in. Through its Express and Metro store formats, Tesco accounts for 30% of the UK convenience sector.

The retail juggernaut previously stated that one of its company goals is to be “easily the most convenient for our customers [who] continue to expect better, faster, integrated digital retail to make shopping easier.” It opened its 2,000th Tesco Express store last year.

In a press release announcing his appointment to the John Lewis board, Tarry said he was “looking forward to deliver[ing] its clear strategy.”

The shift in business objectives comes after a period of financial difficulty for the retail brand. After a £234m loss in 2022. JLP published a pre-tax profit of £56m in March. It began amping up hiring, and shared a full list of interview questions to fast-track talent acquisition.

White’s latest comments suggest these recruitment efforts will also support the company’s expansion into convenience stores.

Less is more in modern retail

John Lewis is not the only company that’s chasing Tesco Express success in 2024. Ikea UK confirmed it would open up a high street store on London’s Oxford Street in spring 2025.

The Swedish firm is famous for its giant warehouses which can take customers an entire day to trek through, including a 1.3 million square foot distribution centre in Doncaster, England. But its new central London location will be just 85,000 square feet.

The industry shift is answering calls for smaller, more frequent purchases from customers. Despite volume sales decline, the convenience sector grew by an estimated 5.3% in 2023.

Younger buyers are driving the trend. This group is used to streamlined, tech-driven online shopping. When it comes to buying in-store, they expect a similarly speedy experience.

46% of Gen Z consumers said a “quick and easy checkout” was their top concern when making a purchase in a report from the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

High street woes

The rise in on-the-go purchasing is reflected in today’s flailing high street. Numerous UK brands have gone into administration as the rise in ecommerce curbed appetites for in-store shopping. In February, retail footfall was found to be 11.5% down on 2019 levels.

In this context, local convenience stores are proving more successful than larger outlets. As shoppers stay at home to shop, they are less likely to visit a warehouse or department store.

Yet, they will still pop to the corner shop to make an impulse purchase; something one in ten Brits reportedly now does every time they leave the house.

Small businesses are, naturally, well positioned to capitalise on these customer insights. As buyers ask for ways to fit shopping into their busy daily lives, they will increasingly search for local stores with product lists they already know and that answer a specific need.

Still, competition for footfall within the UK high street remains high, and tech will be vital for outpacing rivals. Retailers should look into adopting smart payment technologies and AI-powered tools to take advantage of the trend towards smaller, on-demand shopping lists.

The UK’s most famous music festival, Glastonbury, will take place this Wednesday until Sunday. But while thousands of attendees look forward to a holiday, UK employers will instead need to prepare for millions of lost work hours.

An estimated 200,000 people will descend on Glasto this year. Assuming each attendee works a 40-hour week and takes three days off for the festival, UK businesses can expect to lose a total of 4,800,000 work hours this week. That amount could surge if staff also take sick leave when the post-festival blues sets in next Monday.

Those who didn’t manage to get a ticket now face a jealous week of filling in for colleagues, while the latter enjoy headliners such as SZA, Coldplay, and Shania Twain.

Mu-sick fans

Nearly five million work hours is a substantial amount for UK businesses to lose, particularly in today’s economy when output means everything.

The majority of these days will form part of an employees’ annual leave allowance. Full-time employees in the UK are entitled to receive at least 28 days’ paid annual leave a year (including bank holidays), meaning staff would have taken these days off anyway.

More concerning for employers is the drop in productivity that Glastonbury’s recovery period might trigger. After five days of partying, some festival fans may choose to pretend to be ill and stay at home, rather than return to the office with a headbanging hangover.

What if an employee is caught skipping work?

Legal experts have already warned employers to be alert to workers pulling a sickie to watch England play in the UEFA Euros 2024. Last year, an office worker was sacked after she was spotted by managers on TV celebrating an England goal during Euro 2020.

In a poll of 2,000 Brits, one in three said they planned to phone in sick for England’s opening game against Serbia, which took place earlier this month.

Employment lawyers at Richard Nelson LLP have since advised that, if a manager thinks an employee has called in sick and it is not genuine – such as to recover from a hangover – they should investigate the case as part of an employee’s performance review.

“Bosses may take disciplinary action over unauthorised absence,” Jayne Harrison, head of employment law at Richard Nelson, told The Sun. For Euro and Glasto fans, Harrison recommends employees “book annual leave for the following Monday.”

Festival or flexible working?

The first Glastonbury festival was held back in 1970. Many of today’s employees have more options than music fans at the time had when it comes to returning to work, thanks to the advent of flexible working.

Modern office workers can take advantage of arrangements such as remote work to avoid having to come into the office, or flexi hours to give themselves a lie-in on Monday morning.

The employee benefit has come under fire from some firms this month, as more employers attempt to boost office attendance by ordering staff back into the office full-time.

Glastonbury exemplifies how flexible working can enable skiving staff and strict employers to compromise on events, and prevent them from causing disruption in the workplace.

I truly believe that we have every core component required ready to disrupt and redefine the global podcasting industry with this new company. We have done this in our own tiny way already with the Diary of a CEO, but I'm haunted by the potential that we see to scale this globally, for the people and the voices who will change the world.

If you think this sounds like the job for you, then you may want to move fast.

Applications are open, but there is likely to be a deluge of CVs being fired off in the direction of Bartlett’s office right now. With his present EA, Chapman, now settling into her new role as Director of Lifestyle, there’s hopefully some support at hand to get the best applications onto Bartlett’s desk in the meantime…

Executive Assistant – Flight Group – apply here

Four years ago, investors were scrambling to invest in Asos. The fashion marketplace surged in popularity following the closure of high street stores during COVID, and millions of us Brits spent our newfound free time scrolling through a kaleidoscope of t-shirts and shorts.

In 2024, the brand has fallen out of style. March’s results show an 18% drop in sales year on year for the first six months to 3 March, totalling an underlying pre-tax loss of £120m.

Asos is blaming output. Referencing the “sub-optimal newness” of its stock, it is now targeting faster delivery of product lines to rival fast fashion titans. It is also demanding staff return to the office, warning that remote work is “detrimental” to company performance.

Below, we’ll go behind the counter and into the stockroom to delve into what’s happening at Asos, and whether the website can redress to impress this year.

Stuck with stock

Asos first arrived on the catwalk in 2000 as As Seen On Screen. Flogging versions of clothes sported by celebrities, its tagline was, “Buy what you see on film and TV”.

The excitement of the emerging ecommerce trend immediately propelled Asos upwards. After launching a womenswear brand in 2004, the retailer began to add bigger labels to its wardrobe, such as Nike. It became a virtual high street for early internet consumers.

Fast forward 24 years, and (like the real, struggling UK high street) Asos has stalled. It now stocks over 850 brands and boasts an infinite product aisle in the tens of thousands.

That has led to an overstuffed inventory desperate for a clean out. Even today, despite the mild June weather, the brand has over 4,000 coats and jackets for sale on its website.

In an effort to “facilitate the right sizing of stock”, Asos has begun scaling back. Last year, it shuttered its Staffordshire warehouse, in a bid to save around £20m per year.

In April, it said it had cut its intake of new stock by 30%, and would sell off discounted old stock to achieve the “right level of newness to excite customers” in its clothing lines.

Faster fashion

Ten years ago, Asos’ production cycle for new stock wouldn’t have been described as slow. But the goalposts have been moved by the arrival of larger, fast fashion brands such as Shein and Temu, both of which have had huge success in the global ecommerce market.

It can take up to four weeks to deliver a new item at Asos. Shein is reportedly able to “design”, produce, package, and distribute products in under 3 days. Unlike the former, Shein produces each item in small quantities, so it cannot be weighed down by old stock.

Whether this supply chain is ethical (Shein has faced multiple allegations of worker abuse and exploitation) is a matter of opinion. It is certainly not environmentally friendly. Research indicates that 64% of the 34 million items produced by the industry will end up in landfill.

To buyers, it doesn’t seem to matter. While Asos’ sales have faltered, Shein’s have soared. This month, the brand confirmed plans to go public, with an estimated value of £51.7bn.

In answer, Asos is scaling its “high-fashion” two-week delivery programme ‘Test & React’. Currently, Test & React makes up less than 1% of sales. Asos plans to grow this to 10%.

Flexible working

To deliver a high output of products, Asos needs a crack team who are working at optimum efficiency. According to the company, that requires a clamp down on flexible working.

Asos is one of the many companies that have demanded remote staff return to the office for at least three days a week, and in some cases, five. This week, it warned workers about the “detrimental” impact of virtual meetings on business performance.

The retailer has threatened disciplinary action if employees are found to ignore the policy, stressing that project planning, brainstorms, and commercial meetings are “vital” to attend.

Whether office attendance improves output is up for debate. Manchester United owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has argued that remote staff are less productive, citing email statistics as proof.

Others are less sure. Also this week, Mark Mullen, CEO of Atom Bank, said that RTO mandates cause “rebelliousness” among employees, which could stoke workplace conflict and have the opposite intended effect for Asos.

The enigma of Gen Z

Also a concern for Asos is its ability to target the next generation of shoppers, Gen Zers. It’s a problem that has plagued other legacy brands from the early noughties, such as Superdry.

In fairness to retailers, Gen Z, those who are currently aged 16-26, are hard to pin down. They claim to love sustainable resell platforms, for example Vinted and Depop, but have also been drawn to the super on-trend, fossil-fuelled Shein and Temu.

Asos needs to position itself as a brand that answers both of these demands. Social media could be the answer. Platforms such as TikTok and Instagram have allowed traditional brands like Marks & Spencer to become a surprise hit with younger audiences.

It’s a marketing tool that Asos has begun tapping into. In February, it increased its marketing spend by £30m and relaunched its influencer marketing campaign, ‘Asos Insider’.

With a new advertising strategy comes a brand refresh. Asos has also shuffled its leadership team to bring some new ideas to the boardroom.

In December, menswear product director Stefan Pesticcio left the firm after 17 years, alongside Asos brands director James Barron.

At the time, an Asos spokesperson told Retail Week: “This is part of a wider change to our product teams which we’re incredibly excited about.”

New season for Asos

With a revived product development process, a more focused marketing strategy, and having shed the weight of its bloated stockroom, Asos is debuting a new look in 2024.

CEO Jose Calamonte’s turnaround plan has already generated wins. Shares in Asos rallied 10% in April. Emboldened, the company says it is now expecting growth.

Still, in today’s market, caution is more attractive to stakeholders than lofty profit targets. Just ask other brands that have fallen on hard times, such as Cazoo. The car resale platform entered administration in May after failing to establish a sustainable business model.

Some edits will need monitoring. Leadership changes can be unsettling, and a stricter RTO mandate could cause similar unease among employees.

Asos might be seeking a sped up two-week production cycle, but it is wisely keeping its recovery timeline in the medium and long term.

Companies ordering staff to return to the office are creating a workplace culture of “rebelliousness”, according to one large UK employer, who thinks return to office (RTO) mandates are making managers “afraid to ask their employees to come back to the office”.

Mark Mullen, CEO of Atom Bank, a digital-only challenger bank, made the comments in an interview with the Financial Times this week. In 2021, Atom became the largest UK company to adopt a four-day week, a move Mullen says has helped it to steer clear of staff rebellion.

He added that the success of the rollout at Atom has “proved that working practices that may have seemed years away can be introduced rapidly.”

RTO mandates scaring managers

Since remote work became standardised across many UK offices, when – and how often – employees should work from home has become a topic of discussion at every water cooler.

Some employers are going down the tough love route. Manchester United banned home working outright, encouraging staff to visit the office full-time by offering redundancy pay to those who didn’t.

Others have caused scorn among employees for punishing employees, as in the case of Dell and JD Sports. Even brands asking staff to work just one day in the office, such as Lloyds Bank, have seen a fall in employee engagement as a result.

As Mullen argued, there is evidence that managers are struggling to keep the rise in workplace conflict in check. Data shows many are backing out of the argument all together.

According to research by Owl Labs, 70% of UK managers have admitted to allowing staff to work remotely from home, despite their company demanding an RTO.

Four-day week “less challenging” than RTO

With even large companies unsure of how to proceed with an RTO, few employers have claimed to know how to handle the HR conundrum. Mullen, however, believes he has the solution. Into the hybrid versus remote debate, he has introduced another work concept: the four-day week.

For three years, Atom’s now 547-strong remote workforce has worked 34 hours across four days. Their wages, crucially, remain unchanged from when the policy was introduced.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Mullen reported that implementing a four-day working week had been “considerably less challenging” for Atom than introducing a hybrid work policy.

He said planning a four-day week has given the company more control over its workforce’s working style, compared to the loose definition of flexible working.

As a result, managers are more certain over how to implement the policy, and employees are clearer on what their options are.

“We planned the shift patterns, we planned the changes, we consulted on the changes of employee contracts.. [That is] not what happened with flexible working,” Mullen told the FT.

Four-day week set to Atom boom

Last year, a business survey by Startups found that 12% of UK businesses planned to adopt a four-day working week in 2024, marking a seismic shift in attitudes to the employee perk.

The move could be a positive one for businesses. In 2022, 61 UK companies took part in a landmark four-day week trial. 18 months later, 54 reported they had maintained the four-day week policy for teams, according to a report by think tank Autonomy.

In Atom’s case, Mullen reports that the number of staff on sickness leave, as well the rate of staff turnover, both dropped following the pivot to a four-day week.

It is impossible to compare how a hybrid or RTO policy might impact the same workforce. But findings from our four-day week survey suggest the policy could reduce attrition.

52% of UK employees told us they would actively seek future employment from a business offering a four-day workweek. Appetite for the benefit was similar across every age group.

The leader of the UK’s largest curry organisation has presented a list of demands to Britain’s political parties this general election, warning that new visa rules introduced in April have worsened an already crippling staffing crisis.

Earlier this year, the government raised the skilled worker salary threshold for migrant workers to £38,700 per year, up from £26,200.

Decrying the change as “impossible for any small business”, Oli Khan MBE, president of Bangladesh Caterers Association (BCA), which represents 12,000 UK curry houses, has called on whichever party wins the election next month to provide greater aid to the sector.

Khan said the group had so far “not seen any political party recognise our value”, adding “our industry must make its concerns known to politicians of all parties.”

Curry worries

Curry restaurants are today viewed as a British institution; as much a staple on the high street as the traditional pub.

But the Friday takeaway favourite has struggled under a series of challenges since the pandemic, and the new skilled worker salary threshold has exacerbated these.

As a result, the beloved British curry house is starting to disappear. In 2007, 12,000 Indian restaurants were open across the UK. Last year, the number had dropped to just 8,500.

Khan is blaming tightened laws on hiring from abroad. More than 80% of the Indian restaurants in the UK are estimated to be run by Bangladeshis, and many rely on their countrymen to plug labour gaps as waiters and chefs.

However, the new minimum salary threshold of £38,700 has made this wage untenable for most employers. Average pay in restaurants tends to be the National Living Wage, which means most curry houses will not be able to hire migrant workers.

Raising this market rate will not be an option for businesses already struggling under diminished profit margins. In a recent business survey, one in five hospitality firms said they would be unable to meet employee pay expectations this year.

Brexit has “curtailed” access to staff

Staffing woes for Britain’s curry houses have been compounded by preexisting recruitment difficulties caused by Brexit. Pre-Brexit, European workers constituted much of the industry’s workforce, but the end of free movement caused mass hiring issues for UK employers.

Alongside a review of the skilled worker entry requirements, Khan has called for “immediate initiatives that give us greater access to hospitality staff as Brexit has curtailed access.”

Khan has his own suggestion of how to replace the lost resource. He says the BCA is asking the government to invest directly in apprenticeship schemes to “nurture the next generation of curry chefs, creating more jobs and further upskilling the workforce”.

Earlier this year, the government announced it would fund 100% of apprenticeship training costs for businesses, and allow large employers who pay into the Apprenticeship Levy to pass more costs onto SMEs.

However, last month, the CIPD warned that employers were investing in training for existing staff as apprenticeships, rather than pay into the levy. As a result, the number of apprenticeship starts has fallen since the introduction of the Apprentice Levy back in 2017.

Who can curry favour in the election?

The BCA has also requested that the newly-elected government take immediate action to lower the tax burden on the curry industry.

Both parties have pledged to do so by reducing the burden of paying business rates. Last month, the Conservatives unveiled a £4.3bn business rates support package to help small high street businesses with the bills.

Labour, the party which is currently winning the polls, went one step further. Its manifesto declares an intention to scrap business rates and “replace it with a system that is fairer for bricks and mortar businesses”.

The party has also pledged to review the skilled worker visa thresholds if it wins the election on July 3. But it has stopped short of publishing an official policy change.

“We need to see all political parties recognise our sector’s significance and contribution to gross domestic product and employment,” says Khan.

“We need to see the real evidence of measures that can unlock the potential of our industry to do more and put us back to where we were in 2019.”

Young entrepreneurs are most likely to rely on their parents to fund their startup, as research sheds light on how social background can impact a person’s ability to start a business.

In a survey of 501 UK young entrepreneurs, VistaPrint found that Gen Zers (aged 16-26) are almost 10% more likely to get funding from family members, compared to millennials.

Youth entrepreneurism has seen a huge surge in the past few years. In 2022, 4,093 firms were registered by junior founders, representing a 400% uplift compared to 2021.

Despite this, the data suggests that young people who cannot rely on family support will have to wait longer than those from more privileged backgrounds to launch their venture.

Keep it in the family

According to VistaPrint, 22% of Gen Z founders will get investment from their parents or family members, compared to 13% of millennial company owner.s

The findings indicate that having a parent or older sibling who can assist with funding and knowledge is key to getting a business idea off the ground early.

Many famous CEOs you’ll have heard of made their first sale thanks to family connections. They include Nike founder, Phil Knight, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, and self-proclaimed “self-made billionaire”, Donald Trump.

Mark Zuckerberg reportedly took a $100,000 loan from his father to start Facebook (this was mysteriously left out of his Oscar-winning biographical film, The Social Network).

Without this support, entrepreneurs are forced to go through traditional lending channels such as business loans or business grants.

However, this involves a lengthy application process that requires a greater investment of time and resources compared to funding from friends and family.

Family matters

VistaPrint’s data also shows that full-time Gen Z business owners are more likely to have started their company with a family member.

This is potentially because young people aged 16-26 are more likely to be in full-time education, and have less time to dedicate to the day-to-day operations of running a company.

On average, 41% of business owners aged between 16-26 will start a business with their family members, compared to only 24% of millennials.

If a young founder is lucky enough to have a parent with experience running a company, this can be a significant advantage for growing their business and building a leadership style.

They might also have a network of business connections to help fast-track their kid a few rungs up the corporate ladder. For example, Bill Gates’s mum apparently introduced him to executives at IBM, which helped him to forge a deal for his first operating system MS-DOS.

How to start a business with no family funding

There is nothing wrong with using family connections or money to launch a company. As shown, many of the world’s best-known business people did the same.

For those who cannot rely on this route, however, it can be discouraging to see how much faster it takes for these business ‘nepo babies’ to register a company.

Having this early advantage could also be one of the reasons that CEO salaries for working class founders are shown to be £16,749 less than peers, an example of the Class Pay Gap.

The grind still pays, however. VistaPrint still found that young business owners in the UK are making £51,000 a year, on average, against the average UK annual salary of £34,000.

Founder Joe Seddon had no connections to rely on when launching his company. He told us about the challenges of starting a business with no family or friends funding.

Fintech darling and former Startups 100 winner Revolut has signed a 10-year lease with the YY London building in Canary Wharf. Revolut has made the investment despite being a remote-first brand, signalling some form of return to office (RTO) might be on the cards.

The Revolut team will move into the larger, newly-refurbished building in March 2025. The startup began in the business district back in 2015, four years before it won the 2019 Startups 100.

The relocation follows the announcement of an employee share sale in May, and suggests Revolut is betting on the new office space to facilitate further growth and investment. The company recently confirmed plans to expand its global workforce by 40% in 2024.

“More innovative” office space

The popularity of remote and hybrid working has created a number of challenges within the commercial property sector. Many businesses have downsized their office space, choosing to reduce rental costs rather than invest in an under-utilised work environment.

Revolut’s latest uproot will do the opposite. The new headquarters will take up 113k sq ft of desk space in the building, over four floors, to expand the company’s overall office footprint in London by 40%.

Despite the change, Revolut continues to describe itself as a remote-first company. Over a third of its workforce is based outside of the capital, and the brand has a “permanent flexible working” policy that allows workers to choose if and when to come into the office.

However, the new lease suggests that office attendance and in-person engagement is a priority for the business. According to a press release, Revolut will use the swanky space in “a more innovative way” for product launches, workshops, team-building activities, and other events.

Recruit to the office?

Revolut’s decision to invest in office space also forms part of its supercharged recruitment strategy. The fintech firm has previously shared plans to boost its global workforce by 40% in 2024, expanding from 8,000 staff members in January, to 11,500 by the end of the year.

Job seekers could be swayed by the many amenities and employee benefits afforded by the new building. Alongside desk space, YY London also has showers, cycle parks, two restaurants,  a cafe, and outdoor terrace space.

Experts have argued that businesses need to invest in flexible office space in order to attract new hires and engage staff members.

Other banking brands have taken a different outlook, however. Last year, HSBC made headlines when it declared it would move out of its 45-storey Canary Wharf tower, and into a smaller, more flexible headquarter building based in the City of London.

Earlier this week, Lloyds Banking Group Plc also confirmed it would move thousands of staffers to the City, in order to create a “more sustainable office footprint”.

Employers split on RTO

Some employers have clashed with their remote workforce this year, as the debate around home working rages. Manchester United and Dell Technologies have both made recent headlines for rolling out RTO policies that punished team members for choosing to work from home.

Revolut appears to be taking a more empathetic approach to the debate. Rather than penalise staff for working from home, the investment in the YY London building suggests the brand thinks rewards, incentives and a new environment will improve office attendance.

It remains to be seen if Revolut’s planned events and workshops will prove exciting enough to keep hybrid teams returning to the office, and encourage new team members to join them.

Interested in working at Revolut? Check out what roles the firm is hiring for in June

Choosing a business name requires a bit of creative thinking. But new data suggests that the upper limits of creativity are being curbed by the government, as profanity-loving business owners come up against the censorship of Companies House.

In total, 766 business names were rejected in 2023, with swearing being the main offence. According to a Freedom of Information request, submitted by 1st Formations, curse words made up 24% of business name applications rejected by Companies House last year.

Companies House has strict rules about what is and is not allowed in a firm’s title. But experts are now cautioning that the government’s laws on registering a trademark or name might be behind the times with Brits’ love of a good swear word.

‘Doofus’ too rude to be registered as a company name

Entrepreneurs might be curious about just how profanity-laden their business name idea needs to be for Companies House to turn it down. As the 1st Formations findings suggest, even a mildly offensive term might be enough to earn entrepreneurs a rejection letter.

Blasphemous business names rejected by Companies House in 2023 include:

• Little Pricks Tattoo Studio
• Wtf Where’s The Food
• Phat Phuc Noodle Bar Ltd
• See You Next Tuesday Ltd
• Forkin Recruitment Ltd
• Fukin Takeaway Ltd
• Fukim Ltd
• Fart Limited
• Cfuk Limited

Insults that wouldn’t be out of place on a primary school playground can be turned down by Companies House. Just ask the owner of ‘Doofus Dream Cars Limited’ and ‘Lmao Ltd’, both of which were rejected as expletives.

Of the 188 business names rejected for swearing, ‘crap’ was also a common occurrence within the list, with names like ‘Crappy Nappy’ and ‘Scrap Your Crap Ltd’ both turned down.

This is despite the eco-friendly toilet paper brand, ‘Who Gives A Crap?’, which is based in Australia, announcing it achieved record UK sales this week, suggesting that Aussie attitudes to swearing are more relaxed than the British government.

Companies House needs bringing “up to date”

Earlier this year, data compiled by US recommendation service Enjoy Movies Your Way found that the annual number of swear words across mainstream TV shows and films in Western media has surged from fewer than 5,000 in 1985, to over 60,000 last year.

Linguists today argue that swear words are becoming more acceptable in the UK, and are today used merely to emphasise points rather than cause offence.

This language transformation could be why Companies House’s strict policies on supposedly rude names now feel out of touch with modern society. 1st Formations’ Director, Nicholas Campion, argues the list shows the government has an “outdated assessment process.”

“Companies House [may] need to bring itself up to date with modern language usage, as the Oxford English Dictionary has done, and, while we’re at it, accommodate the Great British sense of humour,” he adds.

There could be a real business incentive to adopting a punny business name. Last year, a consumer survey by BusinessNameGenerator showed that 64% of Brits would be more likely to notice and remember a funny company name, which could lead to a boost in sales.

How to choose a business name

Profanity was not the only reason for business names being rejected in 2023. The 1st Formations data sorts the list into six prohibited categories:

• Profanity – 24%
• Drug references – 16%
• Sexual content – 15%
• Violence – 11%
• Discrimination – 8%
• Uncategorised – 26%

Here are some examples of the kind of organisation names that are forbidden by Companies House for the above reasons:

There are also a number of other reasons why a company name may be rejected by Companies House, such as excluding “Limited”, “Ltd”, “Cyfyngedig”, “Cyf” or if the name lacks uniqueness or is too similar to another company.

For example, W H Spliff would likely be considered objectionable even without the drugs reference, thanks to its similarity to the name of a certain, well-known UK retail chain.

Campion advises that “if your proposed company name is similar or identical to a name already registered, Companies House will likely reject the application.”

Registering a company name is a fundamental step when setting up a new firm. Read our full guide on how to choose the perfect name for your business.

The Labour Party has said it will require all large businesses to publish an Ethnicity Pay Gap report, if it wins the UK general election on July 4.

Party leader, Sir Keir Starmer unveiled the new pledges as part of the Labour Party’s official manifesto, titled Change, in Greater Manchester earlier today.

Similar to gender pay gap reporting, the legislation would make it mandatory for firms to report on the pay disparity between Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff in a workforce.

Racial Inequality Act

The principle that all workers, regardless of gender, race, sexuality, or disability, are entitled to equal pay for equal work was first set out in the Equal Pay Act.

However, the existing legislation does not currently require businesses to divulge the difference in pay for ethnicity. That could soon change if the Labour Party, which is currently winning in UK polls, comes into power.

In his speech, Starmer confirmed plans to introduce a new Racial Inequality Act. According to Labour’s manifesto, this would “enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for Black, Asian, and other ethnic minority people.”

Similar to the Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information), the new laws would require some firms to publish specific ethnicity payroll data to reveal any wage disparities.

Exact details on how the reporting process would work have not yet been revealed. Based on the current rules for gender pay gap reporting, only organisations with more than 250 employees (classed as large businesses in the UK) would need to publish the data.

When comparing average hourly pay for minority ethnic versus white employees, data from the Office for National Statistics shows a mean pay gap of 25.8%.

Disability pay gap

As well as asking large businesses to report on the difference in pay between ethnic minority employees, Labour has also vowed to support more disabled employees in the UK, by requiring companies to publish data on the Disability Pay Gap.

Disabled employees are often unable to work full-time, or are forced to go on long-term sickness absence, due to their disability, resulting in lower average wages overall. They also might face barriers and discrimination in employment.

In November 2023, TUC analysis of data from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) found that the difference in average earnings between disabled and non-disabled workers is now 14.6%. This is 5.5% greater than the gender pay gap between men and women.

Starmer also said the party would seek to make disability hate crime an “aggravated offence” and “tackle the Access to Work backlog”.

DWP figures show that the number of disabled people waiting for a decision on their Access to Work claim reached 25,063 by December 2023.

Awareness grows of UK pay inequality

Labour has not signalled if it would extend the pledge to cover sexual orientation. On average, LGBTQ+ workers in the UK earn £6,700 less than their straight counterparts, contributing to a LGBTQ+ Pay Gap.

Similarly, it has given no word on the Class Pay Gap, which refers to the difference in pay among workers from different social backgrounds, and few UK employers report on.

Still, the decision to introduce mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap data has been welcomed by experts. Melissa Blissett, Pay Gap Analytics Lead at Barnett Waddingham, said it sent “a clear message of fair pay, fair progression, and reward for the workplace.”

However, Blissett also cautioned that “lessons also need to be learnt from gender pay gap reporting”, opining that “reporting itself is not enough to change the dial.”

“Going beyond the reporting figures and analysing the underlying data to monitor trends, progress, potential blockers and drivers of the pay gap will be important,” she added.

New Zealand, also known as Aotearoa or “land of the long white cloud”, is considering introducing a Digital Nomad visa to open up the country to wanderlusting remote workers.

If it is announced, the scheme would make New Zealand the first country in the Oceania continent to welcome tech-enabled and self-employed workers to its islands. It would join Japan, Italy, and Thailand, all of which unveiled their own Digital Nomad visas this year.

Few details have been announced so far, but we do know that the New Zealand visa scheme would enable digital nomads to live and work in the country for at least a year.

In January, The Economist forecast there could be one billion digital nomads by 2035.

NZ will “start small” with Digital Nomad scheme

Digital nomads are workers who can carry out their job in any location. As a result, many choose to travel abroad and see the world while working, which is why so many countries have begun to introduce specific Digital Nomad visa programmes.

Back in March, New Zealand’s newly-elected Immigration Minister Erica Stanford confirmed that the country’s government was considering a visa scheme for digital nomads.

During its recent election campaign, the now-ruling National Party indicated it would begin by offering up to 250 visas to foreign employees, as a kind of soft launch to gauge interest.

The proposed scheme would allow them to live and work in New Zealand for employers based outside the country for up to 12 months. Based on other, similar schemes, it would likely have the following entry requirements:

• Valid passport
• Minimum income
• Health insurance
• No criminal record

Scheme will target startups and software experts

Mahesh Muralidhar, a National Party candidate who has been a prominent campaigner for the Digital Nomad visa, shared that he thought the scheme should cater to entrepreneurial tech experts and sole traders.

“[For example], a software engineer who has worked at a large company and had one or two failed startups, or a designer coming here, mixing and mingling with our founders and entrepreneurs,” he told the New Zealand newspaper, The Post.

Likely, the scheme will not be confined to just these occupations, however. Research by IT service provider Redcentric revealed that a range of professionals would be interested in quitting their job to work as a Digital Nomad.

The report shows that accountants are most likely to want to move abroad, followed by IT technicians, software engineers, and teachers.

“New Zealand will forever offer something truly special for anyone that comes here. We are incredibly lucky to have what we have and should take advantage of that,” Muralidhar added.

Tax concerns cause hold-up

It could be within New Zealand’s interest to introduce a Digital Nomad visa; not least because its own inhabitants are being lured away by rival schemes.

Technology firm Cvapp recently found that, since 2019, there has been a 2700% increase in searches from New Zealanders using Google to find remote work.

However, the scheme’s delivery appears to be getting caught on tax legislation. This has become a controversial topic in the Digital Nomad visa debate.

Specialised visas often have tax concessions to entice applicants. But some countries, such as Mexico and Argentina, complain this pushes up living costs for locals, while contributing little to regional economies.

Robyn Walker, New Zealand Deloitte tax partner, agrees. “Obviously, we’re in a global war for talent but we still want people who are happy to pay their fair share,” she told The Post.

How can I work in New Zealand now?

Stanford has declared that, while the National Party is open to the idea of a Digital Nomad visa, it is “unfortunately not as an immediate priority”.

In the meantime, Brits who are interested in moving to the land of The Lord of the Rings must be content with applying to New Zealand’s Working Holiday Visa. The scheme allows visa holders from the UK to live and work in NZ for three years.

Technically, this scheme is meant for those who are employed by a New Zealand-based company. However, it is possible to work for a foreign employer on this visa.

That said, after six months, you will legally be classed as a tax resident and will need to register for self-assessment in New Zealand (although because of the UK’s double taxation agreement, you will be able to claim tax relief).

Failing that, New Zealand also offers an Accredited Employer Work Visa, which will allow employees to work for a local, accredited employer for up to five years.

Keen as a Kiwi? Don’t worry, we’ll keep this page regularly updated with any new information related to the proposed New Zealand Digital Nomad visa.

And now, the weather. Summer 2024 is shaping up to be one of the wettest on record, with meteorologists predicting on-off showers until the end of June. The news is sure to disrupt Brits’ barbecue and park day plans. More concerningly, it poses a real challenge for SMEs.

Retail and hospitality firms have already been hit by dampened consumer spending. Many rely on sunny spells to boost sales strategies throughout June, July, and August.

But with the Met Office predicting there could be as many as 50 wet days over the course of the next three months, the extra rainfall is unlikely to give SMEs the profit windfall they rely on. Below, we examine the stormy outlook for Brits and businesses this summer.

Storm in a pint glass

One sector likely to be hard hit by the bad weather is hospitality. Summer is the time that many pubs, bars, and restaurants open up their beer gardens, doubling seating capacity and maximising sales. But patrons won’t enjoy the space if it is accompanied by a downpour.

In a survey by The Morning Advertiser, conducted in 2022, 82% of pub operators reported that wet weather had ruined their summer trade. Purchases of seasonal drinks declined as a result, with cider experiencing a 15% decline in sales.

This summer’s wet forecast is particularly poorly timed. Sporting events such as Wimbledon, the UEFA Euros, and the Paris Olympics could have been big money-makers for pubs.

Will customers be content to watch Murray from a sodden pub deckchair? Most likely not.

Travel hubs, such as train and bus stations, have brought an uplift in footfall for small cafes and lunch spots. But if bad weather disrupts Brits’ travel plans, this rescue plan could falter.

Put away the summer wardrobe

Another industry that relies heavily on dry weather is retail. The UK high street is already struggling due to a decrease in footfall. Many popular brands have gone into administration, as consumers increasingly shun in-store shopping for online.

Taking a trip to the shops looks less appealing under a grey sky. Rain was one reason why retail sales fell by 2.3% this April, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Analysts pointed to April showers as the reason for the drop. While the start of spring typically brings good weather, alongside two bank holidays for organisations to increase profits, April 2024 saw several flood warnings issued across the UK.

Poor weather is most testing for clothing stores. Owners ordered this season’s clothing line months ago, flogging shorts and bikinis that will now be little in-demand.

2024 consumer research, conducted by Mintel, found that 12.5% of consumers shop more when it is raining – but only in covered shopping areas such as large shopping centres.

These out-of-town retail parks tend to be populated by larger chains who can afford the more expensive business rates, pushing out smaller traders.

Tourism troubles

Rising temperatures are already playing havoc with European tourism; melting ski slopes in Switzerland and the Alps. But operators in the UK are also impacted by extreme weather.

Local hotels, B&Bs, and other leisure operators might also struggle, as bad weather tends to reduce the number of tourists visiting certain destinations.

The threat is having long-term effects on certain UK regions. The Lake District is one of the UK’s top tourist hubs, boasting scenic views and lakeside walks. But charities have warned that extreme weather conditions are damaging its popular trails.

Interestingly, however, the growing awareness of climate change and its impact on nature is driving a new trend for eco-tourism.

President of Cumbria Tourism Jim Walker recently told in-cumbria: “People want to know how to access the Lake District [and] how they can do it sustainably.”

Could bad summer weather close businesses?

This summer looks set to be a damp squib for retail, leisure, and hospitality. Frustratingly, the inclement weather arrives at a time when another storm is already gathering for SMEs.

Staffing costs have reached untenable levels for firms since COVID. The new National Living Wage, introduced in April 2024, brought a welcome payday for staff, but has squeezed profit margins for businesses already grappling with worsening sales volumes.

Hospitality firms, as a result, are struggling to hire staff or pay wages, while also grappling with new labour laws that have worsened access to overseas talent. Meanwhile retailers have been forced to raise prices to stay afloat – jeopardising their ability to attract customers.

For companies operating on miniscule profit margins, failure is a real threat. 3,000 bars and restaurants in London have already closed since March 2020, and this summer will not improve the situation for brick-and-mortar businesses.

One lifeline for SMEs is the upcoming general election on July 4. As party leaders battle it out to win the small business vote, manifestos are filled with promises to support entrepreneurs.

Last November, the main opposition, Labour, announced a number of plans designed to revitalise the UK high street, including a pledge to reform business rates.

This could be why, at the end of last year, Startups found that 58% of business owners said a change in government in 2024 would have a positive impact on their prospects.