Jas and Jason Wouhra OBE, the brother and nephew of East End Foods founder Tony Deep Wouhra, have bought the two East End Foods cash & carries from East End Foods Ltd.
This follows the sale of East End Foods to Exponent Private Equity in September 2019.
Jason Wouhra is now the CEO of the newly formed company Lioncroft Wholesale, which is trading as East End Wholesale Stores.
East End Foods Ltd will continue its focus on growing the food business, while East End Wholesale Stores will focus on growing the two cash and carries at Aston and Smethwick.
Speaking exclusively to Asian Trader, Jason Wouhra commented: "It is good to be keeping at least part of the business in the family. I have worked in the cash & carry business since I was a child. I hope to grow the cash & carries, even without the ethnic foods business being attached to them."
Wouhra, who is a doctor of sciences with a business-related qualification and has an OBE for services to international trade, added: "I believe there is a bright future for the cash & carry sector. The characteristics of the business are changing, the methods of serving customers are changing. But there is still a healthy buzz around cash & carries. I don't agree that the business is dying out, which you often hear from the doom mongers."
Rohit Samani, Executive Chairman of East End Foods Ltd, commented: “We have a long-standing relationship with Jason and Jas and we look forward to continuing that relationship within the new organisation. The East End cash and carries will continue to stock the East End brand and both companies are fully committed to building our businesses on a mutual basis.”
Financial stress has emerged as the top cause of poor wellbeing for retail workers in 2025, shows UK’s latest State of Financial Wellbeing Index.
The new report, published by the Financial Wellbeing Forum and supported by Wagestream and the Retail Trust, finds a staggering 92 per cent of retail workers think the cost of living crisis “will never end”- even higher than the UK average of 88 per cent.
Money was already the top concern at the beginning of the crisis, when the index was first launched in 2022, but the gap between money and any other wellbeing concerns has widened – by 59 per cent.
Employers have rushed to put additional financial support in place, with around 75 per cent of retailers offering new types of financial education since the Cost of Living Crisis began.
But the report delves into the complexities of retail workers’ financial situations, revealing that they often hold conflicting views about money – making it challenging for employers to provide effective support.
Rather than focusing on short-term reaction to the current cost of living crisis, the researchers say there is still time for employers to pre-emptively tackle the wider ‘Cost of Life’ from colleagues’ financial stress.
This shift would see retailers considering practical, flexible initiatives both for the long-term, like workplace savings schemes and financial coaching, and immediate relief such as debt helplines and discounts.
“Retail’s large workforce and the fact that wages are skewed to the lower end of the scale means that the cost of living crisis is more acutely felt in our sector,” said Chris Brook-Carter, CEO of the Retail Trust.
“While many of the employers we work with have been taking steps to address this, the report highlights what more they can do to support the long-term financial wellbeing of their employees and foster a healthier, happier and more productive workforce.”
Therese Procter, FWF chair, says, “This is the next big shift in workplace financial benefits, where retailers move from fire-fighting to future-planning. It’s about equipping employees with the financial skills and tools they need to not just survive but thrive long-term.
"This means tools to build healthy savings habits, manage debt effectively, and plan for the future.”
The report is being launched today at an exclusive industry event attended by leaders from major retailers like Tesco, Next, Aldi and Primark.
The FWF Summit will provide a forum for discussion and collaboration on how to best support the financial wellbeing of retail workers.
New rules about how and where foods high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) can be promoted and displayed in larger shops and online have been passed by the Senedd.
The regulations are designed to prevent impulse purchases and over-consumption and expected to help to tackle the growing problem of obesity in Wales.
The Food (Promotion and Presentation) (Wales) Regulations 2025, which largely mirror rules already in place in England, will:
restrict promotions that can encourage over-consumption, such as multi-buy offers and free refills of sugary drinks
restrict the presentation of foods high in fat, sugar and salt products at prime selling locations such as store entrances, checkouts and website homepages
apply to medium and large businesses with 50 or more employees
The Welsh government said, citing research, up to 83 per cent of purchases made on promotion are impulse buys, with almost half (43%) of food and drink products in prominent store locations promoting sugary foods and drinks.
“These regulations are a key part of our strategy to tackle Wales’ growing obesity problem,” Welsh health secretary Jeremy Miles said after the vote in the Senedd.
“We want to make it easier for people to make healthier choices and we’ll achieve this by improving the food environment around them. If we ensure healthier food and drinks are more available, accessible and visible to people in shops and stores, it will support our efforts to reduce obesity rates and improve public health.”
Miles has earlier said that the government will continue to support businesses and local authorities to implement and enforce the requirements introduced by these regulations.
The regulations will come into force in March next year following a 12-month implementation period.
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JET New North Road store in Ilford has become the go-to place for quality flowers
JET New North Road store in Ilford, London is expecting its flower sales to cross £85,000 this year from popular calendar days, including Mother’s Day, International Women’s Day and Valentine’s Day.
Tulips, roses and mixed bunches are among the bouquets expected to sell well this Mother’s Day weekend, with predicted sales of £20-25,000.
Valentine’s Day remains the most popular flower-buying event, with sales of £35,000, while the increasingly popular International Women’s Day celebration recently led to sales of £25,000 for the family-run business.
JET New North Road in Ilford
“We’ve seen our flower sales skyrocket over the years – helped along by calendar days like these,” Kayur Patel, business manager at JET New North Road, said.
“Flowers bring so much joy, and we’re proud to be a part of helping customers bring that joy to their loved ones with a beautiful bouquet!”
Offering high-quality flowers from Amsterdam and Kenya, the Ilford-based service station has become the go-to place for quality flowers in the community - with more than 1,000 customers expected to buy Mother’s Day flowers this weekend.
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Victoria Lockie leaves Unitas for a new adventure.
Unitas Wholesale retail director and executive board member Victoria Lockie is to leave the business in April as she looks to take on a new challenge, the buying group confirmed to Asian Trader today (27).
Lockie joined the business in September 2024.
In a span of six months, she has played a pivotal role in strategically reviewing the Unitas retail proposition and the overall service provided to Unitas members.
Heading up the retail and commercial functions, she has made a significant impact by identifying strategic opportunities, developing her team and revitalising Unitas’ DE&I agenda.
Managing Director John Kinney said, “I would like to thank Victoria for her hard work and commitment in the time that she has worked at Unitas. We all wish her the best of luck with her next opportunity.”
Lockie also oversaw Unitas' Plan for Profit scheme, which is a subscription service offering independent retailers business updates, rewards, and resources to help them succeed in the convenience market, including core range guides and promotional packages.
Prior to Unitas, Lockie spent more than 12 years at NISA.
Joining in 2012 as a sales support manager, Lockie served in positions such as head of retail operations and head of key accounts. Her time at Nisa was transformative, both for herself and the company.
She also led the symbol group’s retail team through significant transitions, including Nisa’s shift from a mutual-style ownership structure to a corporate governance model.
Lockie also became a trustee for MADL (Making A Difference Locally), where she worked to help independent retailers support their local communities.
She is an ambassador for Diversity in Wholesale, Women in Wholesale, GroceryAid, and WiHTL ‘Women to Watch 2024. or many years has heavily supported the Association of Convenience Stores including the more recent Shopkind campaign.
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Brian Eagle Brown with new ShopMate 360 EPoS solution
ShopMate has introduced ShopMate 360, a “streamlined and affordable” EPoS system designed for convenience retailers.
ShopMate said the new solution ihas been developed with small retailers in mind, offering an easy-to-use till interface that requires minimal training. With an intuitive design, even those new to retail technology can quickly get up to speed, ensuring smooth daily operations.
“One thing we often hear is that many EPoS systems come with complex features that small retailers just don’t need. Their tech needs to be smart, but that doesn’t mean loading it up with all the bells and whistles – it actually means the opposite,” Brian Eagle Brown, managing director at ShopMate, told Asian Trader.
The system separates store operations from business management, allowing retailers to focus on till functionality while still having access to key back-office tools like:
Product and category management
Hotkeys and SELs
Wholesaler promotions
User management and reporting
Retailers will benefit from automatic wholesaler pricing and promotions, removing the hassle of manual price updates and ensuring accurate pricing.
Helen and Andrew Wood of Edith Weston Village Store in Edith Weston, Rutland
Additionally, integrated payments with ShopMate Pay simplify payment workflows and reduce overhead costs, offering retailers a single, streamlined solution.
“We understand that convenience retailers need a reliable, easy-to-use solution that helps them run their stores efficiently,” Eagle Brown said. “ShopMate 360 delivers just that – essential functionality without distractions.”
Helen Wood, owner of Edith Weston Village Store, has been among the first to trial ShopMate 360 alongside ShopMate Pay. She praises its intuitive interface: “We’ve found the till interface intuitive and easy to use; everything is precisely where you think it should be. And ShopMate Pay works seamlessly, exactly as you hope it would – it’s just really easy.”