Allied Carpets to go transactional with site revamp

The carpets and floorings retailer will unveil a redesigned site in December, which will feature interactive elements and be transactional from early next year.

On the new site, users will be able to experiment with different designs and change the look of a room by altering flooring or room colours.

Chief executive Clive Hutchings said: “Online is an important area to focus on. Although our existing site is limited, we’re getting more and more hits on it. It’s where we should be investing our marketing spend right now.

“It will be a completely new site with a different look and feel to it. It will be far more interactive, so users can experiment with design. We want it to inspire.”

He added that the retailer is hoping to maintain its existing audience while broadening its customer base.

Allied Carpets will steal a march on main rivals Carpetright and United Carpets, as neither of them have transactional sites – nor do they have plans to invest in this area at present.

The retailer will go transactional with a limited product range, but new products will be added gradually.

Hutchings added: “I don’t think any retailers should have a web site that isn’t transactional. Customers now have an expectation of being able to buy online.”