WHSmith to resurrect Richard and Judy Book Club
WHSmith is teaming up with TV presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnegan in order to reprise the popular ’Richard and Judy Book Club’.
The club massively boosted book sales, with selected books selling an average of 250,000 copies, but became defunct after the Richard & Judy show was taken off air.
WHSmith will begin running The Richard and Judy Book Club this autumn, with six books being promoted in store across a 12-week period.
The retailer will run two more book club promotions in the spring and summer, promoting a further eight books over sixteen weeks.
A WHSmith spokesperson says it is “likely” the new book club will be advertised on TV. Books that feature in the club will be selected by Madeley, Finnegan and a WHSmith’s buying team.
WHSmith books business unit director Rachel Russell claims the retailer’s customers were “some of the biggest supporters of the previous Richard and Judy Book Club”.
Madeley says: “We’ve taken our time on this – we wanted to get the details exactly right. Our first selection of recommended good reads should be in WHSmith stores in three to four months. They’ll be clearly marked and displayed.”
This story first appeared on pitch
