MediaCom wins £10m Homestyle

MediaCom has won the &£10m consolidated media buying and planning business for the Homestyle Group, which comprises household names such as Harveys Furnishings, Rosebys, Knightingales and Fabric Warehouse.

MediaCom was the incumbent on the Harveys Furnishings and Kingsbury Interiors media accounts, worth &£4.5m. The agency now holds Rosebys, Knightingales and Fabric Warehouse, together worth an extra &£5.5m and previously held by CIA Media Solutions. The appointment follows Homestyle’s acquisition of Harvey’s last year for &£135m.

At the time of the purchase, which included 315 Harveys and Kingsbury stores, Homestyle said the Harveys stores, which had a reputation for dated three-piece suites and display cabinets, needed modernising to attract younger consumers. Homestyle will convert most of the 66 Harveys high street stores into Rosebys and Knightingale formats.

Homestyle is market leader in the &£2bn-a-year home furnishing textile market. It recorded a five per cent increase in like-for-like sales for the second quarter ending September and a 40 per cent increase in operating profits to &£6.8m.

The win takes effect immediately and MediaCom has already started to plan a national and regional press campaign for the group.

MediaCom joint managing director Jane Ratcliffe says “It is an important win for us.”

Harveys and Rosebys managing director Carolyn Simons says: “Media Com demonstrated a breadth of skills and service that we feel will support the future needs of our business.”