THG has signed a long-term partnership deal with beauty ecommerce retailer, Maximo Group.
The 10 year contract is expected to be worth “in excess of £150m” GMV (gross merchandise value) to THG’s Ingenuity platform each year.
“We are proud to announce our partnership with Maximo. This represents the early fruits of our focus on larger enterprise customers and underlines our position as the online partner of choice for the prestige beauty industry,” stated Matthew Moulding, Chief Executive Officer, THG PLC.
“I am delighted with the progress of our refocused sales team, with our pipeline continuing to build momentum. Our unique end to end global multichannel solution means our addressable market across beauty, FMCG and retail is significant and will continue to expand as a result of our continuous programme of innovation.”
Maximo owns sites including Allbeauty and Fragrancedirect and the deal will initially focus on moving the brands to the Ingenuity platform.
THG Ingenuity will also become Maximo’s key UK operational partner, providing warehouse and fulfilment operations from Q2 2023. That will mean providing a range of services from web design, build and hosting, to delivery.
“Aligning our digital strategy with THG Ingenuity’s technology and operational capabilities will enable our customers to benefit from an enhanced shopping experience, from browsing on site, through checkout to delivery,” added Ian Smith, Maximo Group.
“As a brand owner, THG understood our ambitions from the outset, with Ingenuity’s track record of re-platforming large beauty brands making them a natural strategic partner. We have been deeply impressed with the speed at which Ingenuity have delivered and their commitment to a true partnership from outset.”
The announcement comes as THG is to make up to 180 staff redundant. That follows the completion of a strategic review of its OnDemand division to find its “loss-making categories and territories.” As a result “a proportion” of the division is being closed down.
This move also impacts staff working in THG Studios.
A spokesperson said that it was “committed to supporting all affected colleagues” and “where possible” staff would be offered “alternate roles within the wider THG Group.”