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The Very Group Limited
Formerly
March U.K. Limited (2003–2008)
Shop Direct Limited (2008–2020)
Company type
Private Limited Company
Industry
Retail
Home shopping
Financial services
Predecessor
Littlewoods Shop Direct Group
Founded
1 November 2005; 18 years ago (2005-11-01)
(1923 as Littlewoods Pools)
Founders
David and Frederick Barclay
Headquarters
Speke, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Key people
Frederick Barclay (Owner)
Lionel Desclée (CEO)
Products
Clothing
Electronics
Furniture
Homeware
Jewellery
Brands
Very
Littlewoods.com
Owner
Barclay Brothers
Divisions
Very
Littlewoods.com
Very Ireland
Very Exclusive
Website
theverygroup.com
Footnotes / references [1]
The Very Group Limited[1] is a multi-brand online retailer and financial services provider in the United Kingdom and Ireland.[2] Its head offices are based in the Speke area of the city of Liverpool, England. The brand was established in November 2005 as a result of the merger of the former Littlewoods and Shop Direct companies. The retailer was known as Littlewoods Shop Direct Group until a corporate rebranding to Shop Direct Group in May 2008. In 2013, the company rebranded to Shop Direct, dropping the 'group' from its name.[3] Shop Direct rebranded themselves to The Very Group in 2020.[4]
A business group trading via several digital department stores, The Very Group traces its roots to a variety of mail order companies in northern England, the football pools and mail order business founded by John Moores, as well as the Manchester-based home shopping business of Great Universal Stores. These companies were purchased by Sir David and Frederick Barclay in 2003,[5] and a major business restructuring took place leading to a merger of two companies that had "been arch rivals for the best part of 100 years".[6]
Since the merger of what had been struggling businesses in 2005, ongoing restructuring and modernisation of the company has resulted in Shop Direct emerging as one of the largest online retailers in the UK. Its traditional paper-based and phone-in orders system has been superseded by electronic commerce technology.
The group is now amongst the largest online retailers in the UK, with annual sales of £1.86bn in 2016 and 62% of online sales coming from mobile devices.[7]
The group's brands are Very.co.uk, Littlewoods.com, Very Exclusive and Very Ireland (rebranded from 'Littlewoods Ireland' in July 2022).[8] The former Shop Direct brands are Additions Direct, Abound, Choice, Great Universal, Isme, K&Co, Kays, Marshall Ward and Woolworths. In 2009, The Very Group acquired the brand name of the failed Woolworths Group and re-established it as an online-only operation, this closed in 2015 and the Woolworths UK brand was sold in July 2021 to Woolworth Deutschland.[9]
^ ab"THE VERY GROUP LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". Companies House. 11 April 2003. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
^"Littlewoods Ireland". 14 March 2016.
^ShopDirect.com (29 October 2013). "Digital revolution delivers first profit in a decade for Shop Direct". Retrieved 23 August 2017.
^Carr, Leanne (27 March 2019). "Shop Direct to rebrand as Very, boss Birch reveals". Retail Week. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
^"Britain's biggest private companies: Salute a nation of shopkeepers". London: telegraph.co.uk. 22 August 2008. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
^Cite error: The named reference Double was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^RetailTimes.co.uk (6 September 2016). "Shop Direct reports profits surge on back of technology investment, as Very becomes £1bn+ brand". Retrieved 23 August 2017.
^"Ireland becomes Very". 28 June 2022.
^Harry Wallop (25 June 2009). "Shop Direct chief Mark Newton-Jones launches Woolworths.co.uk". The Telegraph. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
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