HMV group marketing chief outlines vision
HMV Group’s plans to consolidate HMV and Waterstone’s marketing will help it share good marketing ideas across both brands.
Newly appointed group marketing director Graham Sim says the restructure will allow the group to leverage campaigns, promotions and CRM across both brands.
Under the new structure, Sim, the former marketing director of HMV, will be supported by three marketing heads working on CRM, brand and creative across both brands. Waterstone’s and HMV will maintain separate marketing teams reporting to the group heads.
Sim says that Waterstone’s will not emulate the transformation of HMV from a retail brand into an entertainment brand. But he does want to build on the momentum that HMV has fostered and the success seen in the latest results.
He says: “Waterstone’s is already moving into more emotional territory and transforming its stores into social spaces.
“While there are no immediate plans for cross-marketing, there are future opportunities around film franchises such as Harry Potter where DVD, CD merchandising and books overlap to develop a campaign that could run across both chains in bespoke fashion.”
Both Waterstone’s and HMV have their own distinct loyalty schemes with more than 4 million card holders between the two programmes. There are no plans to combine these, but Sim says “there may be opportunities for the two schemes to overlap”.
The group says the changes will not dilute either brand and both will retain their own values.
HMV’s results illustrate editor Mark Choueke’s call for inspired leadership from marketers. Read the article at www.marketingweek. co.uk/Chouekeleadership
