Business News Round Up (24/06/2020)

Diageo spending £4m to help revive Scottish pubs

Johnnie Walker whisky owner Diageo is expected to spend £4 million supporting the recovery of pubs and bars in Scotland as they ease their way out of three months of lockdown.

The funding will be part of an £80m ($100m) worldwide support programme for the drinks retail sector over two years.

The “Raising the Bar” scheme will help bar owners deal with hygiene issues and pay for practical equipment to transform how their outlets will work.

The fund includes £16m allocated to a Community Fund in the United States, leaving £64m to be shared globally.

Bars will get support with the cost of hand sanitiser and a range of personal protection equipment, such as masks and gloves, as well as help with online reservations and cashless systems, mobile bars and outdoor equipment.

https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2020/06/whisky-giant-diageo-spends-80m-helping-bars-recover/

 

Private sector sees hopeful rise in valuations

Britain’s private companies are seeing their collective wealth slowly rise as the country emerges from the three-month lockdown.

These firms have combined turnover of more than £3.3 trillion and employ more than 15 million workers, making the sector a substantial part of the economy.

Their combined valuation has risen by about 14% from 30 April to 1 June, according to data from Unlisted, the Glasgow-based real-time private company valuations engine.

Overall private company valuations are still 39.3% lower than the levels they reached at beginning of March, when concerns about the Covid-19 epidemic gripped the UK.

However, the rise will be seen as a sign of resilience by firms which have withstood severe pressures on balance sheets.

https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2020/06/private-sector-sees-hopeful-rise-in-valuations/

 

Hart Builders kick off first phase of £5.3m Borders project

BERWICKSHIRE Housing Association (BHA) has appointed Hart Builders, part of the award-winning Cruden Group, to carry out the first phase of a new build housing development in Beanburn, Ayton.

The £5.3m project is the fifth project to be delivered by Hart Builders in partnership with BHA and will bring the total number of homes they have delivered jointly to 129.

The 31 new homes are due to complete in summer next year and will provide a mix of bungalows, wheelchair accessible properties and three and four-bedroom family homes.

https://scottishbusinessnews.net/hart-builders-kick-off-first-phase-of-5-3m-borders-project/