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"You have to be creative to survive"

by Heather Gibson

What do Harrods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols have in common this year? They are all expected to outpace the growth in profits of other department store businesses at an average of 6.8% compared with 3.8%. Luxury retailers are investing in the transformation of the shopping experience. Selfridges have been at the forefront of such innovation, focusing on food, drink and presently sleep, with a new hotel planned to open in 2010. According to Ewan Venters, Director of Food and Catering, it is all about fusing fashion with hospitality.

Selfridges reported a 33% increase in profits for year ending January 2007.This result came prior to the opening of the £10 million Wonder Room, the largest in-store investment project in Oxford Street’s history.Though the business has not released sales figures this year, Paul Kelly, Chief Executive commented that the business was “ahead of last year” in July when he ended the summer sale two weeks early. Earlier he had said,“Retailing is fantastic in tough times. In good times it’s boring but in tough times so many new initiatives, ideas and opportunities come out of retailing against the odds.” Ewan Venters agrees,“You have to be creative to survive.”

Kelly has also warned against the temptation of discounting and price competition in tough markets.The goal for Selfridges is to ensure that, when cash-strapped consumers do spend, they are enticed to the luxury feel of a store where they know they will feel special. Commentators refer to the “virtuous circle (created) by investing in their stores and ensuring the store experience matches the spirational status of the brands they stock.”

Ewan comments “There is only one way with discounting; eventually you do not exist. Our environment is all about the products and creating the right environment. People may start treating themselves less often, but they will treat themselves.”

A transformation…

Since Ewan joined the business in late 2005, product innovation has been one of the central platforms for transforming the food and catering provision.“I have a very clear mandate to ensure that our food business reflects the values of our fashion business.We need to be up-to-date with a modern, contemporary edge. It has to have real sustainability and strongly reflect the latest trends.”

“It is fair to say that the food business had been traditionally hugely successful. I inherited a wonderful organisation, but there was a sense that things had started to flatten out a little.My goal has been to inject a bit of pace and a great deal more units. It is about generating excitement so that customers come to our stores and see something new each time, which captures their imagination and ultimately leads to spending money.”

The planned re-launch of the Selfridges Hotel in 2010 is set to provide the next, most visible illustration of the business transformation. Ewan confirms that “it is a little premature to be making formal announcements, but we believe that there is the potential for a great leisure brand. It will reflect our values in being both fun and inclusive whilst having a fashion edge.We are not too concerned with making any formal announcement as to what star rating it will have, though it is obviously going to be top end.The hotel will be accessible to all, whether residents, customers or those who live and work in the local area. Hotels in London inherently have a tough time at weekends.We believe the hotel will provide an all round advantage, through the Selfridges brand, and the ability to link a shopping experience to accommodation.”

One of Ewan’s most visible projects has been the instalment of the Wonder Bar, with a unique wine jukebox dispensing a range of 52 wines.The bar attracted some notoriety after opening when trading standard officials ordered the withdrawal of the unique 25 ml ‘Sip’ measures that were available for the sampling of wines. Ewan, who originated the idea for the small measure, must have found this
frustrating.

“Every industry requires good governance. But my view is that this must come with a good dose of common sense.With the government regularly having to address the problem of binge drinking we actually thought, innocently, that the concept of the ‘Sip’was not only sensible, but a way of educating customers by enabling them to try a variety of wines. It made a wine like Petrus accessible to a wider audience; for £32 a customer can purchase a sip of a wine that would normally cost £1000 a bottle or £165 a glass. In our first two weeks of opening, prior to the removal of ‘Sips’,we sold two bottles.Now, as I understand it, the government is close to changing this law so we will offer ‘Sips’ again.”

Important challenge…

The appointment of full-time sommelier Dawn Davies provides further evidence of Selfridges’ approach to fusing hospitality and fashion. Davies’ remit is the buyingstrategy and customer facing activity across Selfridges. Ewan argues the result is that “we now have a reputation that we never had in the past. Sommeliers are traditionally restaurant based; they are not common in classic retailing.” It is interesting to note that Ewan regards the challenge of attracting the right people as his most important.“Selfridges is not the first choice on someone’s mind when they think of where to work in hospitality.We have brought some great people on board, but we are not 100% there yet.”

A retailer through and through, Ewan’s background lies originally with supermarkets and the Brakes Group.Three days shy of his 17th birthday he joined Sainsbury’s as a Trainee.During his nine and a half years there, he spent five years working as a Personal Assistant to two of Sainsbury’s Directors, including the then Group Deputy Chairman Tom Vyner. “This was an approach used by Sainsbury’s to develop young talent early on and give them exposure to how big business runs.” He went on to join Brakes Group at a time when they were recruiting outside of the family (who then owned a 40% stake) or existing home-grown talent for the first time.

Eventually Ewan became the MD of the White Tablecloth Strategy, leading the acquisition of Wild Harvest and merging the M&J Seafood division into his remit. It was in this role he formed relationships with the likes of Heston Blumenthal, Marco Pierre White and Chris Galvin as a supplier. Ewan has carried on his dialogue with leading chefs as a source of “informal counsel” in his Selfridges role. The ability to talk through ideas and new concepts with MPW, Galvin or Mark Hix is a proud achievement.“I can rely on them incredibly to chat about food trends, concepts, ingredients and we have a great rapport. Marco is involved with Selfridges through his Frankies restaurant; he is very visible and it is great to have his time.”

Having spent nearly three years as part of the team leading the transformation of Selfridges, Ewan is careful not to be sanguine about the future.“Everyday we work harder and harder to buck the trend.We are enjoying continued growth and if we keep paying attention we will be rewarded.”

Photo: Flashfields Photography

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