We’re more used to hearing about Watches of Switzerland opening showrooms rather than closing them but new has emerged that it will be closing 16 of its UK stores.
We don’t yet know the location of the spaces slated for closure but the company confirmed the numbers to the BBC. It also said that 40 jobs are likely to be lost as a result, although it will try to redeploy affected staff where it can.
The company currently has 155 showrooms across the UK and only this month opened one of the largest Rolex boutiques in Europe in London.
Its latest financial year also saw it opening 22 showrooms in total, as well as investing in revamps for another 15 and taking on 15 more stores via jeweller Ernest Jones.
The company said this doesn’t mean the end of its showroom opening programme and it intends to continue expanding its estate both organically and by acquisition. But it needs its “operations to remain as efficient and productive as possible”.
The news seems to have been well received by investors who are clearly focused on the fact that greater efficiency should mean higher profits. The company’s shares have fallen in the last month in the wake of tariff news from the US. But recent days have seen them rising again and they’re up almost 9% over the last five trading days.
U.S. skincare brand Sol de Janeiro announced on Friday the appointment of Laurie Lovett joins to the role of chief people and impact officer, and Elaine Paik to the role of chief financial officer.
Courtesy
In her new role, Lovett will lead human resources, social impact, and ESG, driving the firm’s talent strategy, foster inclusive leadership, and lead brand-related programs.
Lovett was the former global chief people officer at Nielsen and Verisk, and spent 20 years at Accenture.
Likewise, in her new role, Paik will lead finance, IT, and Legal, driving strong governance and financial performance. The finance veteran joins Sol de Janeiro from Impossible Foods, where she served in the role as CFO. Prior to that, she was a long-serving leader at Colgate-Palmolive.
Both Lovett and Paik will report directly to Sol de Janeiro CEO, Heela Yang.
The L’Occitane Group-owned beauty brand said the appointments are a pivotal step as it “scales beyond its $1 billion milestone toward its next era, with people, culture, and operational excellence at the center,” according to a press release.
“Sol de Janeiro was built on the belief that connection is powerful, and people are everything,” said Yang. “Laurie and Elaine are exceptional leaders with the vision, empathy, and rigor to help us grow with soul. Their deep expertise will shape how we scale; not just bigger, but better.”
With these appointments, 71% of Sol de Janeiro’s C-Suite is made up of women, the Brazilian-inspired company added.
Founded in 2015, Sol de Janeiro was acquired in 2021 by L’Occitane Group acquired, valuing the company at$450 million.
China exempted some U.S. imports from its steep tariffs in a sign on Friday that the trade war between the two countries could be easing, though China quickly knocked down U.S. President Donald Trump‘s assertion that negotiations were underway.
Reuters
Business groups said China has allowed some U.S.-made pharmaceuticals to enter the country without paying the 125% duties that Beijing imposed earlier this month in response to Trump’s 145% tariffs on U.S. imports.
Also, a list of 131 product categories said to be under consideration for exemptions was circulating among some businesses and trade groups. Reuters could not verify the list, which includes vaccines, chemicals and jet engines, and China has not yet communicated publicly on the issue.
Trump’s administration has in recent days signaled it is looking to de-escalate the confrontation between the world’s two largest economies, and Trump himself told TIME magazine that talks were taking place and that Chinese President Xi Jinping had called him.
“I don’t think it’s a sign of weakness on his behalf,” he said.
China denied that discussions were happening.
“China and the U.S. are NOT having any consultation or negotiation on #tariffs. The U.S. should stop creating confusion,” the Chinese Embassy in Washington wrote on social media.
In addition to the steep tariffs on China, Trump has announced targeted tariffs on dozens of other countries, which he has suspended until July 9. That has set off a scramble among U.S. trading partners to strike individual trade deals with Washington before the deadline — a tall order, given that past trade deals have typically taken years to negotiate.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he was very close to a deal with Japan. That is seen by analysts as a “test case” for other bilateral trade agreements, though talks could be difficult. Some expect Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Trump to announce a pact when they meet at the G7 summit in Canada in June.
Trump separately told TIME that he had made “200 deals” that would be completed within three to four weeks, though he declined to provide specifics. He said he would consider it a “total victory” if tariffs were still 20% to 50% a year from now.
The office of the U.S. Trade Representative said it had held a productive meeting with South Korea on Friday.
Trump has argued that his thicket of trade barriers will revive U.S. manufacturing industries that have been hollowed out by global competition. Economists, however, broadly warn that they would lead to higher prices for U.S. consumers and increase the risk of recession.
In addition to the country-specific tariffs, Trump has also imposed a blanket 10% tariff on all other U.S. imports and higher duties on steel, aluminum and autos. He has also floated additional industry-specific levies on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.
European and Asian stocks headed for a second straight week of gains on Friday and the dollar eyed its first weekly rise in more than a month, as investors took comfort from signs the U.S. and China were prepared to pull back from their trade war. Wall Street’s main indexes opened slightly lower.
Operators of hulking car carriers are seeking relief from the U.S. Trade Representative’s surprise plan to levy port fees on all foreign-built ships in that segment, including 20 vessels that guarantee transport for the U.S. military during a war or national emergency, three sources told Reuters.
Reuters
USTR announced the fees on April 17 as part of an ongoing effort to hit certain China-linked ships calling at U.S. ports with fees that would fund a domestic shipbuilding revival and counter China’s dominance on the high seas.
The fees sent a shockwave through the vehicle carrier industry, because they went beyond targeting China-built and China-owned ships.
The fees on vehicle carriers are so broad that they would hit the 20 U.S.-flagged and U.S.-crewed vehicle carriers admitted to the U.S. Maritime Security Program (MSP) that supports Washington’s military readiness, according to two attorneys, who requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal.
The fees also would heap massive costs on U.S. automakers already hurt by U.S. President Donald Trump‘s tariff policies.
The levies were not mentioned in the original USTR port fee proposal from February, so unlike operators of other vessels, vessel carriers had no opportunity to give feedback.
“The fee on the car carriers came from nowhere,” one of the attorneys said.
Both said the USTR overreached because the fees are levied on ships made in countries that were not part of the Biden administration’s fast-track investigation that found China unfairly dominates the global maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors.
The World Shipping Council (WSC), whose members include Swedish vehicle transporter Wallenius Wilhelmsen, warned on April 18 that the fees would hit almost every car carrier and have unintended consequences.
WSC declined to comment further.
The attorneys and one industry group say they have requested meetings with USTR to discuss their concerns. USTR did not immediately comment on whether the body would meet with vessel carrier representatives.
The USTR plans plans to charge foreign-built vehicle carriers $150 for every car the ship has capacity to carry, beginning on October 14. That fee would be $900,000 for a ship that transports 6,000 cars.
Vehicle carriers are vital to U.S. military readiness because they can transport large equipment such as tanks, aircraft and helicopters.
Companies with ships in the MSP include Florida-based American Roll-On, Roll-Off Carrier Group, a U.S.-flag operator of vehicle carriers that is part of Wallenius Wilhelmsen Group. New York-based Liberty Global Logistics, is another provider. Spokespeople for ARC and Liberty did not immediately respond to requests for comment, while Wallenius Wilhelmsen declined to comment.
A spokesman for Maersk Line Ltd, the U.S. arm of the Danish container shipping giant which is also part of the MSP, said it is reviewing the most recent information from USTR and preparing for a range of scenarios.
There are 1,466 vehicle carriers in operation, according to data from Alphaliner.
Just 39 of those ships were built in the United States, Alphaliner said.
Politics8 years ago