Business News

St Wilfrid's develops new retail strategy

Published 28 March 2013

Eastbourne-based charity St Wilfrid's Hospice has announced plans to develop a new retail strategy which will increase income from the charity's existing chain of shops and expand the hospice's involvement into e-commerce and other revenue models.

The two-year project, in collaboration with the University of Brighton, takes the form of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) which will be part-funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The ESRC launches new funding for KTPs in the retail sector this week.

A spokesperson for St Wilfrid's Hospice said: "As we receive only 15 per cent of our income from government, increasingly we have to look for new ways to generate additional income. Our shops and retail operation have always provided a steady stream of income but we know there are new and creative ways that we can grow this area of our business. We are looking forward to exploring all the possibilities with the University of Brighton."

The project has provided a dedicated graduate, Veronica Malley, who gained a Masters in the Cultural and Creative Industries from Kings College and has worked for a host of blue chip companies. Veronica said: "This project is such an exciting opportunity – we have the potential to really transform St Wilfrid's retail operations and to fully realise the potential of our existing and future donations."

The charity is currently building a new hospice and decided to invest initially in developing its retail activity as this represents a low-risk model with low capital investment. The project began with a search for possible efficiencies in the infrastructure and systems and will include developing 'charity-shopper' customer profiles to ascertain who buys from the shops and why. It will also research opportunities for charity shops to make a greater impact on the high street through any potential means of diversification.

Stephen Lloyd, MP for Eastbourne, said: "I congratulate St Wilfred's Hospice on their innovative use of government funding. It is exactly this sort of creative thinking by local organisations that helps to explain why Eastbourne continues to buck the national economic trend. It is why we have the lowest retail availability of the top 15 towns in Surrey, Kent and Sussex, with a vacancy rate half the national average."

The project will be led by Harvey Ells and supervised by Chris Dutton from the University of Brighton. Harvey and Chris supported a KTP with Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant in Padstow, which was the first ever retail KTP to be awarded funding.

The Economic and Social Research Council and the Technology Strategy board are now looking to award funding for KTPs in the retail sector that will focus on the changing nature of the UK high street and its retail spaces; e-commerce, m-commerce, omni-channel retailing and consumer data.

KTP offers businesses the opportunity to work in partnership with a university to address their business challenges and embed sustainable innovation. A project is undertaken by a recently qualified graduate (known as the KTP Associate) recruited specifically to work on that project, supported by a senior academic.

For more information about Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) contact Shona Campbell, KTP Manager. Tel: 01273 642 435, mobile: 07967 676 061, email: s.e.campbell@brighton.ac.uk