RetailCraft 51: "Get more out of life" - in conversation with Paul Hornby, Digital Customer Experience Director at the Very Group

Summary Paul Hornby, Digital Customer Experience Director at The Very Group (owner of very.co.uk and other brands) joins Ian Jindal and Georgia Scott to discuss his role, career and the positioning of Very within the market. We explore the history of the group, which dates back to 1890, and how it has evolved into the UK's largest domestic online-only retailer with an integrated flexible payment platform. We delve into the concept of digital experience and how the Very Group aims to help families get more out of life by offering a wide choice of products and flexible ways to pay. They also touch on the challenges of marketing and personalisation, as well as the ongoing technology transformation at the Very Group. Listen out for the term "technical cholesterol" - both the phrase and the explanation are delightful and we wish that we'd thought of this, but the recording doesn't lie ;) Takeaways

• The Very Group is the UK's largest domestic online-only retailer with an integrated flexible payment platform.
• The company aims to help families get more out of life by offering a wide choice of products and flexible ways to pay.
• The role of credit is to support families in managing their household income and making purchases more affordable.
• The Very Group is focused on digital experience and constantly optimizing the customer journey.
• The company is undergoing a technology transformation to create a composable architecture and enhance the customer experience.

Quotes

• "Our purpose as a business is to help families get more out of life."
• "Our job was to translate [the heritage] into a digital world, create a compelling digital experience, and then find a way of translating the mechanism of how you could spread the cost online."

Chapters 00:00 - Introduction and Lunch 01:17 - Introducing Paul Hornby 02:12 - Paul's Role at the Very Group 03:39 - The Unique Proposition of the Very Group 04:38 - The History of the Very Group 06:35 - The Catalog Business and Credit Offering 09:26 - The Transition to the Digital World 13:12 - The Role of Credit in Supporting Customers 15:08 - The Value Proposition to Customers 16:35 - Market Competitive Pricing and Credit Options 21:06 - Digital Marketing and Personalization 24:48 - Paul's Career Journey 29:34 - Returning to the Very Group 32:31 - The Technology Transformation at the Very Group 38:11 - Creating a Learning Culture 39:09 - The Exciting Future of the Very Group

--  Run time: 48 minutes

INFORMATION:

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Very - https://www.very.co.uk/

The Very Group - https://www.theverygroup.com/   

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Paul Hornby: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulhornby/ 

Georgia Scott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgiajones1/  

Ian Jindal: www.linkedin.com/in/ianjindal/ and www.twitter.com/ianjindal 

[ 📷 ] (c) Ian Jindal / www.instagram.com/ianjindal