All posts tagged: Owner

Ex-Harrods owner al-Fayed trafficked women on ‘shocking’ scale, official says

Ex-Harrods owner al-Fayed trafficked women on ‘shocking’ scale, official says

Published by Sam Flores

LONDON — Mohamed al-Fayed, the late owner of Harrods department store, engaged over many years in widespread trafficking of dozens of women with whom he had sex, investigators told British lawmakers. Many of the alleged victims, including young sales assistants from the Harrods shop floor, were transported to Fayed’s home and offices, at times by helicopter, where they were abused by the billionaire owner, according to a recent briefing by London’s Metropolitan Police, the Guardian reported Friday Source link

Minister Torches Billionaire Man Utd Owner Who Claimed Britain Is 'On The Slide'

Minister Torches Billionaire Man Utd Owner Who Claimed Britain Is 'On The Slide'

Published by Sam Flores

Bridget Phillipson tore into Jim Ratcliffe after the British billionaire claimed the UK is “on the slide”. Ratcliffe, who owns Manchester United football club and has lived in tax-free Monaco since 2020, claimed: “If you continue to tax everyone to death, they’re all going to leave. And that’s what’s happening.” “I think the UK is on the slide,” he told the BBC, insisting “tough” politicians have to make decisions which are good for the country rather than their parties. Ratcliffe, worth an estimated £17bn, alleged that high immigration and high taxes have forced Britain into a state of decline and that he would only return if things improved. However, Labour Party chair Phillipson told BBC: “You’ll forgive if I do take with a pinch of salt what someone who is a tax exile has to say about our country. “I am optimistic about our country’s prospects,” the minister said, while acknowledging there are large international headwinds in reference to the ongoing Iran war. “But I fundamentally believe we are in a strong position going into this Budget because of …

Petitgrain Boulangerie owner expands with new bakery and chocolatier

Petitgrain Boulangerie owner expands with new bakery and chocolatier

Published by Sam Flores

Clémence de Lutz begins shaping her famous croissants between midnight and 1 a.m., and sells between 600 and 900 every day at her lauded Santa Monica bakery Petitgrain Boulangerie. But in early September she’s added even more baking to her schedule with a nearby sibling bakery: Petitpain … et Chocolat, building bread and chocolate menus, and baking new pastries. “Bread is the best expression of whole grains,” she said from the new 500-square-foot bakery with a walk-up window. “The croissant is great because it’s got rye and spelt and hard red [flour] in it, and that’s what differentiates it from all the other croissants wherever you buy them, but bread is really where you get to be like, ‘This is spelt,’ and taste it.” Whole loaves of bread and baguettes from Petitpain…et Chocolat. (Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times) De Lutz, who is also a co-founder of the Gourmandise cooking school and a former L.A. Times contributor, now bounces back and forth between her two bakeries, which sit eight blocks apart. Her newest bakes the …

How Josh Kushner became the newest owner of the L.A. Lakers

How Josh Kushner became the newest owner of the L.A. Lakers

Published by Sam Flores

When news broke that Mark Walter’s insurance businesses were under federal investigation and that the Lakers and Dodgers owner might be in financial trouble, Josh Kushner sensed a business opportunity. The New York venture capitalist called former Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger — his partner in a bid for a new Las Vegas NBA franchise — wondering if they might instead snap up Los Angeles’ marquee basketball team. The two quickly agreed, Kushner contacted Walter and within 72 hours the deal was done to avoid a bidding war. And with that, the younger brother of Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, was thrust into a media spotlight he has largely shunned. But while Kushner may be relatively unknown compared with his politically active brother, he has rapidly and quietly risen to the upper echelons of business, with an estimated net worth of $16.7 billion. His Thrive Capital, which he founded in 2010 while attending Harvard Business School, has more than $65 billion under management. Its investments include some of the world’s top young companies, including OpenAI, …

Wayne Manor owner could lose Batman property – over bat surveys

Wayne Manor owner could lose Batman property – over bat surveys

Published by Daniella Wilson

The owner of a Buckinghamshire stately home, which was used as the filming location Wayne Manor in 2005’s Batman Begins, has been ordered to undertake a bat survey – or risk losing the property. Mentmore Towers, the grade I-listed country house in Aylesbury, has featured in a number of films including the Christopher Nolan film starring Christian Bale as masked crusader Batman. It has also featured in 2001’s The Mummy Returns, Sacha Baron Cohen’s Ali G Indahouse, and more recently, the 2026 film Pressure. However, the mansion – which was once owned by the Rothschild family – is at risk of being placed on the market if its current owner does not provide evidence within a month that a licensed bat ecologist has undertaken surveys at the property. Buckinghamshire Council served the building a repairs notice on 4 August, stating that the property requires urgent action to be taken in order to fix failing masonry and issues with water ingress. Mentmore Towers in 1977 (Getty) Before any repair work is conducted, the owner – which …

New Owner May Be Same As the Last

New Owner May Be Same As the Last

Published by Daniella Wilson

Casey Wasserman may soon be no longer on The Team. After being pressured to set up an auction for his Westwood-based firm that drew interest from United Talent Agency, Patrick Whitesell’s upstart shingle WIN and other suitors, the sale of his company may not go to any outside party. Wasserman is in talks to sell his stake in the company to private equity firm Providence Equity Partners, Matthew Belloni reported at Puck on Thursday. Providence had already taken a major stake in Wasserman in November 2022 to fuel growth at the company — notably, a major acquisition of Brillstein Entertainment less than a year later — so a buyout of the company’s founder would keep the firm in the same strategic hands it had been in for the past several years. The news of a would-be deal breakthrough arrives three months after the first round of bids were submitted in April to investment bank Moelis & Co, which handled the auction process. (The bank’s leader, Ken Moelis, sits on Wasserman’s LA28 Olympics Committee board). Providence, …

A Brief Interview With the Owner of the Hot-Air Balloon That Landed in Someone’s Backyard

A Brief Interview With the Owner of the Hot-Air Balloon That Landed in Someone’s Backyard

Published by Miika Tikkanen

Well, in this case, we couldn’t even get the balloon to the street on either side of the neighborhood. That particular backyard was big enough for the basket to land without the balloon in danger of hitting the house. It was more of an opportunity to land safely before we didn’t have fuel to land. So that’s why it was that backyard in that location. The other options were less safe. What’s the process of getting a balloon down safely from that height? Well, it’s pretty simple. Hot air causes the balloon to rise. Let the balloon cool, or let some of the hot air out—we go down. The steerage comes from the wind. So we can control up and down very expertly, as you can see. But left and right, that’s entirely by the wind. In this case, there was no wind for an extended period of time, and that’s why the pilot landed where he did. Can I ask a dumb question, then? If you can’t control directionally where you’re going, how do …

Dish TV Owner EchoStar Q4, 2025 Earnings, Pay-TV Subscriber Loss

Dish TV Owner EchoStar Q4, 2025 Earnings, Pay-TV Subscriber Loss

Published by Daniella Wilson

Charlie Ergen’s EchoStar reported a net pay-TV subscriber drop of approximately 168,000 in the fourth quarter, compared to a decrease of approximately 253,000 in the year-ago period. The company ended the year 2025 with 7.00 million pay-TV subscribers, including 5.02 million Dish TV subscribers and 1.98 million Sling TV subscribers. The company lost 636,000 Dish TV subs in all of 2025, down from a loss of 785,000 in 2024. The firm also recorded a loss of 167,000 Sling TV subs in 2025, a swing from a 37,000 gain in 2024. The decrease in net Dish TV subscriber losses “primarily resulted from a lower Dish TV churn rate, partially offset by lower gross new Dish TV subscriber activations,” EchoStar said in a regulatory filing. “The change in net Sling TV subscribers was primarily related to lower Sling TV subscriber activations, partially offset by lower Sling TV subscriber disconnects in 2025 due to our emphasis on acquiring higher quality subscribers.” The filing added: “We continue to experience increased competition, including competition from other subscription video on-demand and live-linear OTT service …

The Apprentice 2026: Meet the 20 candidates from a barbershop owner to an AI consultant

The Apprentice 2026: Meet the 20 candidates from a barbershop owner to an AI consultant

Published by Daniella Wilson

The 20th series of The Apprentice is set to launch later this month, with 20 ambitious candidates vying for Lord Sugar’s substantial £250,000 investment. Lord Sugar will be supported by his trusted advisers, Baroness Karren Brady and Tim Campbell, as they whittle down the candidates across 12 demanding episodes. This year’s tasks include creating a children’s book, selling products live on television, and orchestrating a corporate away day on the Red Sea in El Gouna, Egypt, testing their entrepreneurial mettle in diverse environments. The diverse cohort of candidates brings a range of backgrounds and business aspirations to the boardroom Andrea Cooper A 46-year-old grandmother from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, who runs two businesses. A lettings agency owner with five children and one grandchild, she impressively achieved a first-class honours midwifery degree at 40. She describes herself as “hard working, resilient and will give anything a go,” but warns, “if I am crossed once then that’s it, no more chances. I am not a pushover.” open image in gallery Andrea Cooper (BBC) Conor Galvin A photobooth business …