Net heads

Management Today

London

Jul 2000

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Abstract:

With 17 years' marketing experience, Nick Adderley has worked for a variety

of High Street retailers. In the past 4 years, he has worked for Sainsbury's.

He is now head of marketing for Sainsbury's e-commerce division. In a brief

interview, Adderley discusses his interest in the Internet and his company's

Web strategy.

Copyright Haymarket Publishing LTD. Jul 2000

Full Text:

NAME NICK ADDERLEY

POSITION HEAD OF MARKETING FOR SAINSBURY'S

E-COMMERCE DIVISION

WEB SITE SAINSBURY.COM

With 17 years' marketing experience, Nick Adderley has worked for a variety

of high street retailers, including Superdrug, Holland & Barrett and Curry's.

In the past four years he has worked for Sainsbury's, where he was responsible

for in-store marketing and promotions. In this role, he created a strategic

framework for promotional marketing, culminating in Sainbury's England

and Scotland football sponsorship in the last World Cup, and Sainsbury's

becoming the Red Nose retailer for Comic Relief in 1999. Adderley moved

to his current role in 1999 and has since led the rebranding of the home

shopping operation to Sainsburys to You, as well as establishing the retailer's

new food and drink portal, tasteforlife.

When did you become interested in the internet?

I believe that the future of established bricks-and-mortar businesses lies

in the potential of the Internet and other new media channels. Companies

that fully embrace and innovate using these technologies will be the ones

that succeed in the 21st century. Sainsbury's has developed an e-commerce

strategy that firmly builds on the core values of the brand and is set

to drive the future of supermarketing.

How much time do you spend surfing each day?

At least one hour a day during the week, and longer at the weekends, so

I can keep up to speed with industry developments and the competition.

I also like to stay in touch with content and trends online targeted at

different audiences, and can often be found surfing the latest Pokemon

sites to impress my kids and all their mates.

Which sites do you use each week?

I regularly look at Sainsbury's, of course. Food and drink sites around

the world are constantly changing, so I check these from time to time to

keep us one step ahead of the game. I also log on to BBC on-line for the

news and weekend weather so I know when I can go out and play bad golf,

and always go to 'The Onion' for a bit of a laugh. Also, I use various

government and industry sites to keep up to speed with the latest e-business

initiatives.

Who are your advisors?

AKQA, which we have been working closely with on the design of our food

and drink portal, CSC, IBM, Bain and, of course, my kids.

What is your company's web strategy?

Sainsbury's is set to revolutionise the way we interact with food and drink

by embracing new media technologies. Our strategy is to own and lead food

& drink on any digital platform -in sales and content. What are the most

significant changes that the internet will bring about?

The one thing people can't buy is time, so they will gravitate towards

brands or companies that unlock this for them and that meet their different

lifestyle needs. The challenge is to make sites with 'killer' content that

are fun, interactive and quick and easy to navigate.

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