MAGnet #05 - 25/06/21

Magnet 5

 We welcome you to the fifth edition of Magnet. This week we’re discussing the possibility of a small return to the high street for Debenhams, the Fintech Global report which shows Manchester climbing ever higher, and Channel 4 under the threat of privatisation.

Enjoy!

Out and about: Debenhams may return

High street department store Debenhams might be returning to the high street with just one small store outside of London as new it’s owner Boohoo, attempts to strike deals with major beauty brands. Before its departure from the high street, Debenhams was thought of  as one of the leading retailers in premium beauty, but now that seems to have changed. Speaking to The times, Boohoo Group chief executive John Lyttle said some beauty brands had refused to supply products to Debenhams unless it had a physical store presence, which explains the plans to open one store. Lyttle said the firm was in talks about opening the small Debenhams shop outside of London, but he insisted it would be “one store and one store only”.

A liquidation process saw Debenhams officially shut down the last of its stores on our high streets last month, officially ending 243 years of trading on the high street for the department store. This happened after Debenhams’ brand, ecommerce operations and assets were bought out of administration by Boohoo Group in a £55 million deal in January, and the deal didn’t include Debenham’s store estate.

Although the brands like Benefit, Elizabeth Arden and Ralph Lauren continue to supply to Debenhams as an online-only operator, the website does not stock make up brands such as Yves Saint Laurent and Chanel, both of which were previously sold in the department stores.

In the meantime, Boohoo Group is set to launch a new marketing campaign to boost the new Debenhams online site to boost customer awareness that the department store brand is still operating, albeit in an online-only capacity- we’ll keep our eyes peeled for that.

Data: Fintech

A newly published 2021 Global Fintech Rankings report was recently released and it shows  that London remains the second most active city in the world for Fintech, behind San Francisco. It also highlights that the rest of the Fintech space in the UK is rapidly expanding, particularly in areas including Manchester and Birmingham.

In fact, Manchester has climbed 19 places, to 34th position globally, 9th in Europe and 2nd in the UK.

The 2021 Global Fintech Rankings are compiled by Mambu and identify emerging hubs, companies and trends around the world.

In campaigns: Manchester Arndale

The Arndale shopping centre sits at the heart of Manchester City Centre and their latest campaign, as part of welcoming shoppers back to the city over the summer, showcases six people who are local to the city, and who have different experiences of working, shopping and living in the city. The ads range from 30 seconds to a minute, focusing on each person and they are played  on ASVOD platform, YouTube.

In the Arndale’s own words, it’s good to be back.

In TV: Channel 4 & the possibility of privatisation

This week came the announcement that the  government is to review the ownership model and remit of Channel 4, opening up the broadcaster to the possibility of being privatised- as soon as next year.

Additionally, and separate to that announcement, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said it would also consider clamping down on streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

Channel 4 is state-owned but 90% funded by adverts, giving it a special position among the UK’s broadcasters. Its advertising revenue allows it to create content for more diverse audiences, in line with its public service remit.

"Moving Channel 4 into private ownership and changing its remit could help secure its future as a successful and sustainable public service broadcaster," the government said in a statement.

It also said it would look at "whether the regulation of video-on-demand services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime need strengthening so they are subject to similar rules as traditional ‘linear’ broadcasters such as the BBC, ITV and Sky".

But senior executives at Channel 4 slammed back against a possible privatisation, warning some programmes could be scrapped if the move does go ahead.

The reviews of Channel 4 and the streaming services will come ahead of a broadcasting white paper, which is due in the autumn. The paper is slated to consider the future of the country’s broadcasting landscape, according to the government. It’s likely this will be a developing story, and that nothing will be certain for Channel 4’s future until the white paper is released later on this year.