BBC NewsBorrowing was £17.4bn last month, the second highest October figure since monthly records began in 1993.
Kiki McDonough
I love the atmosphere in my store just off Sloane Square at Christmas time. Everybody comes in in such a positive mood, looking for special presents for loved ones or something pretty to wear.
It’s always our busiest time of year, and this year, the stone of the season seems to be the fire opal. It’s full of drama and colour, a deep red-orange hue that is perfect to wear this season if you are looking to make a statement.
As the year comes to an end, I’m reflecting on my 40th anniversary in business which has made 2025 very special. It hardly seems like 40 years ago that I sat down with a blank piece of paper and a pencil in hand contemplating my first design and wondering what on earth I had let myself in for. That period was hugely exciting, with Margaret Thatcher encouraging entrepreneurs to take risks and go for it – it felt like there was nothing that couldn’t be achieved. It has been the most wonderful, rewarding four decades since then, building an international brand, and I couldn’t be more grateful to every client that has supported me along the way.
I rarely indulge in puddings, except during this one magical season. Christmas pudding has a charm I cannot resist. Once a year, its heady blend of dried fruit, spices, and rich brandy draws me in, and I’ll seize every opportunity for a helping. The moment it’s lit, blue fire dancing across its surface, feels like a comforting ritual. I savour every fragrant, boozy, sticky mouthful, and it’s always the highlight of my festivities.
What government in their right mind would schedule a Budget as late as November 26th, as our current one did? Like the last Budget, this one was presaged by doom-mongering talk of tax rises across the board. Everyone I know in business has been concerned in the run-up, and naturally consumer confidence is affected. This is the last thing business needed in the busy pre-Christmas period, which is so crucial to retail.
I am a huge patron of the ballet and this year I am looking forward to The Nutcracker at Covent Garden. The ballet debuted in December 1892 in St. Petersburg, firmly tying it to the Christmas season. The story unfolds at a festive family gathering, with a Christmas tree at its centre, and expands into a dreamlike winter wonderland. During the opening Christmas Eve party, the Stahlbaum children excitedly await and then participate in the gift-giving moment, which always reminds me of when my children were young and used to open their presents with a sense of wonder (once at 3am).
I’ve always been a fan of Boxing Day. As a devoted football fan, it’s usually the highlight of the festive season in terms of sport. So I’m quite disappointed that the Premier League has scrapped the traditionally packed Boxing Day calendar this year. My lifelong loyalty lies with Liverpool, and whether they’re playing on the 26th, the 27th, or whenever over the festive period, I’ll be cheering them on with my usual passion.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the authorities in London could make a firm New Year’s resolution: no roadworks for 2026? In Sloane Square, the sound of drilling has been more familiar than anything else for the last three years. There’s no doubt it’s impacted footfall for retailers across the area. Everybody in my part of town is thoroughly fed up with it, and desperate for a break.
One of the things I’m proudest of this year is publishing my first book, Kiki McDonough: A Life of Colour. It’s a celebration of everything I have built over four decades and features over 200 of my designs. It has been great fun to put together over a couple of years. I’m not usually one for looking back, only forward, but this process meant I had to do quite a lot of the former. Over the lifetime of my business, I’ve negotiated two recessions, a pandemic and ten prime ministers. But what I’m most proud of is doing it all on my own – with no directors, investors or, apart from very early on, loans from the bank.
