UKNM: BarclaySquare - from bad to worse ?

[Carl Christensen]

BarclaySquare can't get the tenants, so they create some of their own


The latest site rejig at www.barclaysquare.com has some new tenants  :-

On-line Hi Fi Store

2001 Domestic Appliances

Discount TV and Video


Hardly household names, and no wonder - they are all facades owned

entirely by Barclays


Are Barclays re-inventing their business model and becoming the

retailer, much like the Sainsburys and Tescos of this world dabbling

with banking, or have they just got it hopelessly wrong ?


Behind-the-scenes fulfilment of the TVs and fridges is handled by Home

Electrical Direct (HED) whose helpline operator (0870 6060290) 

confirmed that " BarclaySquare *is* the merchant and takes the money -

they just choose to use HED for fulfilment."


Why partner with HED (=A3250,000 turnover last year)?  It reeks of a

last resort - and Barclays loses out on price with HED whose own

no-frills site at www.hed.co.uk focuses entirely on discount prices,

invariably cheaper than Barclays'  three new facades


Barclays has been talking to major market-leading electrical retailers

for a long time, trying to get them onto BarclaySquare, without success.

The major retail brands simply don't need BarclaySquare.


You don't see any bank owning a shopping "mall" in the real world, and

it has always puzzled me what a bank is doing owning a virtual shopping

mall. It is one thing Barclays owning an online shopping mall, but

selling fridges and TVs ?



Carl Christensen

Marketing Director

Domino Systems