Member Article

New retail platform Shoptility gives online shopping the personal touch

Launches in travel market with more than 200 partners on board

Shoptility, a new revolutionary retail platform, launches today with an ambition to transform the way people shop online. Founded by entrepreneur Will Lownsbrough, formerly of Zoopla and Vizzihome, Shoptility will dramatically reduce the time people spend searching for products on the internet by putting consumers and retailers in direct contact. This means a quicker, easier and more personal experience for shoppers and a more meaningful connection for retail brands that can tailor their products to meet customer needs.

Shoptility will initially focus on the travel sector, with more than 200 partners already on board, ranging from large established brands such as Cox & Kings, Fred Olsen Travel and James Villas to niche specialists including Snow Finders, Regal Dive and Pure Safari, to name but a few. It will expand into other categories such as home and garden, electricals and wine in the next three months.

The business, which has already raised nearly £2m in funding, is operated by a group of experienced entrepreneurs with proven commercial success in prior ventures. It is headed up by Will Lownsbrough, former shareholder and managing director of Vizzihome, a property market intelligence business that was acquired by Zoopla in 2013. Other key individuals on the management team include Chairman Kevin Hollinrake, founder and managing director of Hunters estate agents, and marketing director Tom Hings, who previously held senior marketing roles at IHG, Royal Mail and Carlsberg.

They have identified a gap in the market for a more personal way to shop online, whereby shoppers can have a one-to-one dialogue with retailers to find exactly what they are looking for. This avoids unnecessary searching and saves the time it typically takes to make considered purchases online. For example, the average Briton spends as many as 24 hours looking for and researching holidays on the internet[1] . Retailers are also set to benefit, by being able to cultivate relationships and build advocacy by offering online shoppers advice and products tailored to their needs – a far cry from the faceless transactions normally associated with e-commerce.

CEO Will Lownsbrough says, “A staggering £91bn was spent online in 2013, according to the IMRG-Capgemini eRetail Sales Index, and this figure is set to rise to £107bn by the end of this year. However, we believe there is a significant opportunity for a new way to shop online.

Consumers in today’s connected world are more demanding than ever, and we know from the huge amount of research that exists that they want a greater level of customer service and personalisation. What we’re doing is completely different to anything else at the moment. We reverse the method of search, with the retailer doing the searching on behalf of the shopper. They have the product knowledge and are best placed to provide the shopper with exactly what they are looking for, leaving the shopper to sit back and relax. This is online shopping at its best - faster, easier, more personal and meaningful than ever before.“

[1] http://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/average-briton-spends-over-24-hours-researching-holiday-before-booking/

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Will Lownsbrough .