Shop Direct rebrands to The Very Group as it prepares for new phase of growth

The retailer said the change of name would make the most of strong consumer awareness of its Very brand, launched 10 years ago and now a £1.5bn turnover operation. Shop Direct itself grew out of the old Littlewoods catalogue and department store business.

The Very Group describes itself as “the UK’s largest pureplay digital retailer and financial services provider” and generates annual sales of £2bn to approximately 4 million customers.

Very said the rebrand would also “support a recruitment drive over the next two years for 150 roles in data and technology and hundreds more at the company’s new fulfilment centre in the East Midlands”. The new fulfilment centre will become operational later this year.

The Very Group chief executive Henry Birch said: “I’m hugely proud to introduce The Very Group. This rebrand builds on over 100 years of history during which time we’ve gone from catalogues to bricks to clicks to mobile. We’ve always had a passion for reinvention and becoming The Very Group is another important part of our story.

 “We want to be the number one destination for shoppers who value flexible ways to pay. We’ll achieve that by constantly improving what we do, innovating with data and technology at our core, and delivering the best experience for our customers and our colleagues.”