30 Jun 2022 07:00
Unbound Group plc ("Company" or "Group")
Curated multi-brand platform announces initial partner brands
Trading update & Change of Nominated Adviser & Broker
30 June 2022
Unbound Group plc today announces the launch of its curated multi-brand platform to offer a broader range of new partner brands and complementary own-brand products for its core 55+ customer demographic. The Group is initially launching its partner brand offering within apparel and specialist footwear categories. Starting from 28th July 2022 through to October 2022, the Group will onboard 14 partner brands which will be sold on its new platform. These will be followed in due course by expansion into other areas including wellness and its own Unbound Group brands.
First Partner Brands for Platform Launch
The Group is delighted to announce the following 14 brands, across apparel and specialist footwear categories:
· Apparel
- Rohan, Asquith of London, Boody, Noa Noa, Part Two, Kaffe, Soaked in Luxury, Cream, and Lakeland Leather
· Footwear
- Birkenstock, Muck Boots, Geox, Sketchers and Hush Puppies
The launch of the aforementioned brands will be phased on the Unbound platform from July through to October.
Building on the digital strengths, customer loyalty and growing (currently 4.6m) customer database, which represents some 30% of the UK 55+ female population, each brand has been curated to meet the needs of our customers, based on relevancy, desirability, specialism and sustainability criteria, following a careful selection process and data-driven insights. It is therefore expected that the introduction of these brands to Unbound Group will benefit from greater engagement and an uplift in cross and up-sell opportunities.
Unbound Group is currently exploring a number of opportunities which will further evolve and accelerate its growth strategy. As a result of insights gained from Hotter and the specific 55+ customer demographic that the business serves, the Board believes that there is a significant opportunity to drive increased customer activity and loyalty from its current subscriber base.
Hotter Shoes - Trading Update and new Garden Centre Concessions
Following the Q1 trading update issued on 22 May 2022, the Company confirms that Hotter continues to trade in line with the Board's expectations for the year ending 5 February 2023.
During the course of June, the business has opened two new garden centre concessions within the Notcutts chain at Rivendell, Cheshire and Garden Pride, East Sussex. This remains a key channel as a low cost and flexible retail format ideally situated for our target demographic within garden centre locations that will increasingly play a key role in connecting us with our customers.
Ian Watson, Chief Executive Officer of Unbound Group plc, commented:
"It's great to see our team's effort coming to fruition as we prepare for the launch of the Unbound platform. Over the past months we have carefully selected a number of brands that we are pleased to announce today, who we look to build a long-term partnership with and who will be part of our initial platform launch from 28th July. We look forward to developing more partnership opportunities over the coming months as we expand our curated offer."
Change of Nominated Adviser and Broker
The Board of Directors today announces the appointment of Singer Capital Markets as the Company's Nominated Advisor and Sole Broker, effective immediately.
ENDS
Enquiries
Unbound Group plc Dan Lampard / Jenna Shillcock 020 3874 8300
Singer Capital Markets
Peter Steel / Tom Salvesen / Alaina Wong / Kailey Aliyar
020 7496 3000
Vico Partners Sofia Newitt 020 3957 5045
Notes to Editors
Unbound Group plc
Unbound Group plc is the parent company for a group selling a range of brands focused on the 55+ demographic. Unbound Group will build on the solid foundation of Hotter Shoes, its current main business, to grow value through its curated, multi-brand retail platform supporting the active lifestyles of the 55+ demographic with a range of products and services. Unbound Group's platform will be powered by Mirakl's leading marketplace technology to enable the Group to partner seamlessly with selected third-party brands. Unbound Group's expanded offering beyond footwear will feature a broad range of active lifestyle products and services, with third-party complementary brands featuring alongside new Unbound Group brands, as well as Hotter.
Hotter Shoes
Hotter Shoes, an Unbound Group plc company, is one of the UK's leading specialist footwear brands, selling over 1.4 million pairs of shoes per year. Hotter's footwear has an uncompromising focus on 'customised comfort' and perfect fit through the use of its differentiating technology, including its e-commerce platform, 3D foot scanner and augmented reality app which enables the consumer to try products virtually from home. Hotter has been transformed from a retail to a digitally led, omni-channel business over the past 3 years, selling its footwear to over 4 million customers via online, its direct mail order channel and its targeted 17 Technology Centres and 8 garden centre concessions in the UK. With its clearly defined, large and growing target demographic, Hotter now reaches some 30% of the female population in the UK over the age of 55. Digital partnerships have recently been established with several online retailers including Next, John Lewis, The Very Group and M&S.