Tie-dye making an appearance on wallpapers, love-bird cushions and the mackerel collection of ceramics have caught the eye of Esther N McCarthy this week

Irish investment funds IPUT and Davy have made two separate swoops on suburban Cork retail assets.

From new gloves to the latest high-tech tools, Hannah Stephenson reveals her Father’s Day picks

B&Q stores owner Kingfisher missed forecasts for sales growth in its latest quarter, held back by the weak performance of its French businesses.

From fruity picnic cups to savvy summer hampers, Esther N McCarthy picks the best buys of the week

With spring in the air it could be the right time to give your home a lift with these bright ideas, writes Esther N McCarthy.

Shares in B&Q owner Kingfisher fell up to 5.8% yesterday, taking losses for the year to more than 30%, after it reported weak quarterly sales and said it would be pulling out of a number of European markets.

B&Q is expected to reveal a second-quarter boost from the warm weather next week, helped by shoppers splashing out on barbecues and garden furniture.

More than 450 jobs at Marks & Spencer are at risk in the UK after the retailer announced plans to close 14 stores as part of a restructuring programme.

Inditex, the world’s biggest clothes retailer and owner of Zara, reported a 9% rise in first-half profit, but its gross margin, as a percentage of sales, slipped, because of a stronger euro.

The pound was heading towards 15-month highs against the US dollar following stronger than expected UK retail sales data.

Profits at B&Q owner Kingfisher are expected to tumble when the DIY firm reports half year results next week, after it was hit by wetter than usual summer weather and amid a slowing property market.

Profits at B&Q owner Kingfisher are expected to tumble when the DIY firm reports half year results next week, after it was hit by wetter than usual summer weather and amid a slowing property market.

All flowering plants sold by B&Q will be grown free from the pesticides that are linked to a decline in the bee population.

A Limerick-based company is aiming to target a global market with €500m, reports Trish Dromey.

A new phase of retail warehousing at Cork city’s Turners Cross kicks off this week, with tenants Homestore+More taking 26,000 sq ft close to the super-sized Woodies outlet, while DID Electrical are due to follow on the same site in another new build for which planning has just been granted.

Former Tesco boss Terry Leahy has urged the British people to vote to stay in the European Union, reiterating his warning that food prices will rise as a result of Brexit.

A woman has been awarded €85,000 for injuries she received after she was covered “from head to toe” by varnish when a tin lid fell off as she was scanning it at a self-service checkout in a DIY store.

A convicted forger has admitted beating Irish student Karen Buckley to death with a spanner then trying to dispose of her body using caustic soda.

A health board is investigating claims that surgeons used a saw found in a cupboard to amputate a man’s leg.

The effect on its Irish operations of DIY chain B&Q’s imminent closure of 60 stores across the UK and Ireland remains unclear.

In this week’s Q&A, Kehlan Kirwin talks with Peter Cosgrave from CPL Recruitment, who has gained insight into how companies can future proof their business.

Fears that the “Fifty Shades effect” would whip up a flurry of call-outs to over-zealous lovers went limp as Britain’s biggest fire service revealed it did not attend a single incident.

Firefighters fear they may become tied up with a rise in call-outs over people getting trapped in compromising situations as a result of the ‘Fifty Shades’ effect.

The ranks of female bosses in the FTSE 100 Index are to be boosted after Britain’s biggest DIY chain announced a change in leadership.

Parents have been warned of the dangers of DIY after an inquest heard a toddler was killed when a fireplace fell on her at her home.

Whether your dad is a foodie, fitness freak or footie fan, and your budget is big or small, Carol O’Callaghan has it all wrapped up when it comes to the perfect gift.

Shares in Kingfisher, Europe’s biggest home improvements retailer, fell 6% yesterday as pressure on profit margins and a smaller-than-expected sales boost from warmer weather pushed first- quarter earnings below forecasts.

Home improvement retailer B&Q Ireland returned to break even in the second half of its latest financial year — less than 12 months after emerging from examinership — its parent company revealed yesterday.

B&Q owner Kingfisher today posted a 4% rise in annual profits amid signs that it is benefiting from the upturn in the UK housing market.

Nearly 2,700 jobs will have been saved this year by companies opting for examinership as a way of trading out of their difficulties, new estimates suggest.

THERE may be a recession still rolling across the valleys, but by gum my compatriots, we are not surrendering our bathrooms.

DIY retailer B&Q Ireland has shown signs of improved trading since emerging from examinership in May, its parent company said yesterday.

Weaker-than-expected European economic data gave British investors a jolt today as the FTSE 100 Index slipped back from yesterday’s three-week high.

Investors stuck to the sidelines today as evidence of a strengthening US job markets fuelled expectations that policymakers will cool stimulus efforts.

Siptu is to meet the 180 Marks and Spencer workers who will lose their jobs after the retailer announced the closure of four stores.

The head of Retail Excellence Ireland says at least seven large employers are considering going into examinership, putting over 3,500 jobs at risk.

“Traditional capitalist models” were not working and an alternative is needed, members of the UK's Co-operative Group were told today at its AGM.

The successful emergence from examinership of DIY giant B&Q (Ireland) and ladies fashion retailer Pamela Scott after releasing themselves from prohibitive rent agreements is likely to set a precedent for other similar-sized chains, according to industry representative Retail Excellence Ireland.

More international retail chains may follow B&Q and Pamela Scott into examinership in a bid to make landlords tear up crippling rent agreements following the rescue of almost 800 jobs in those companies.

B&Q Ireland is to exit examinership, a move which is set to save 640 jobs.

He lifted me in his arms, wrestling my urgent heftiness with a swearing stagger up the stairs.