RE: UKNM: BarclaySquare - from bad to worse ?

[Kirstie Hill]

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

	selling fridges and TVs ?


	And Tesco's selling pensions and Internet access, Mark &

Spencers selling loans ... 


IS Solutions plc

DDI : 01932 8933313

Mobile : 0468 805074

Web : http://www.issolutions.co.uk


	-----Original Message-----

	From:	Carl Christensen [SMTP:

carldomino [dot] com

]

	Sent:	31 July 1998 15:58

	To:

uk-netmarketing-digestchinwag [dot] com

	Subject:	UKNM: BarclaySquare - from bad to worse ?


	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