The Very Group
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Online retail, Financial services |
| Founded | November 2005 |
| Headquarters | Speke, Liverpool , United Kingdom |
Area served | United Kingdom, Ireland |
Key people | Lionel Desclée (CEO) |
| Products | Retail (apparel, footwear, electronics, home furnishings, gifts, beauty, outdoor gear, seasonal products, toys), Financial services |
Number of employees | Not specified |
| Parent | Not specified |
| Website | www |
The Very Group Limited functions as a prominent multi-brand online retailer and provider of financial services within the United Kingdom and Ireland, with its main office situated in Speke, Liverpool. The company was formed in November 2005 through the consolidation of Littlewoods and Shop Direct. Since then, it has undergone multiple rebrandings: initially known as Littlewoods Shop Direct Group, it was renamed Shop Direct Group in 2008, shortened to Shop Direct in 2013, and ultimately rebranded as The Very Group in 2020.
The company’s roots trace back to historic mail order enterprises based in northern England, including the football pools and catalogue business established by John Moores, alongside Great Universal Stores’ home shopping operation located in Manchester. These entities were acquired by Sir David and Frederick Barclay in 2003, triggering a significant restructuring that merged two long-established competitors.
Since the merger in 2005, The Very Group has evolved from traditional paper-based and telephone ordering methods into one of the UK’s leading online retail platforms. For the fiscal year ending June 2024, the group reported revenues of £2.13 billion and achieved an EBITDA growth of 8.4%, reaching £267 million.
Among its principal brands are Very.co.uk, Littlewoods.com, Very Exclusive, and Very Ireland (which was rebranded from Littlewoods Ireland in July 2022). Previous Shop Direct brands included Additions Direct, Abound, Choice, Great Universal, Isme, K&Co, Kays, Marshall Ward, and Woolworths. The Very Group acquired the Woolworths brand in 2009, revived it as an exclusively online retailer before shutting it down in 2015; the brand was later sold to Germany’s Woolworth in 2021.
Origins
The foundation of The Very Group lies within several independent northern English mail order and retail companies, notably Littlewoods—established by John Moores—and the Manchester-based home shopping division of Great Universal Stores (GUS). Additional early components included K&Co (previously known as Kays Catalogues).
Littlewoods was founded in 1923 by John Moores along with his brother Cecil as a football pools enterprise before branching into catalogue retailing from 1932 onwards. In November 2002, ownership of Littlewoods transferred from the Moores family to the Barclay brothers for £750 million.
Littlewoods also operated the Index chain of retail outlets.
GUS plc’s home shopping and catalogue division, ARG Equation (which encompassed Great Universal, Kays, Choice, and Marshall Ward), was separated from GUS and acquired by the Barclay brothers in 2003, resulting in the formation of Shop Direct.
Merger: Littlewoods Shop Direct Group
In March 2005, a portion of the Index retail chain was sold to GUS plc (the owner of Argos), while the remaining stores were closed.
In July 2005, Associated British Foods purchased the Littlewoods retail chain consisting of 120 branches for £409 million on behalf of Primark. Some outlets were converted into Primark stores; others were sold off. By March 2006, the Littlewoods brand had vanished from UK high streets.
Following these divestments and after receiving approval from the Competition Commission, Littlewoods’ home shopping operations merged with Shop Direct (previously GUS’s home shopping division) in October 2005 to establish the UK’s largest home shopping company. The merger process commenced in early 2004 with a business optimisation initiative aimed at streamlining functions.
After the merger, Littlewoods Shop Direct Group moved its headquarters from central Manchester to Skyways House located in Speke, Liverpool.
CEO Mark Newton-Jones characterised this merger as a significant undertaking involving the integration of two longstanding competitors with differing operational methods and corporate cultures.
Post-merger
In May 2008, Littlewoods Shop Direct Group adopted the name Shop Direct Group to better represent its strategy encompassing multiple brands. Shortly thereafter, in July 2008, Shop Direct expanded by acquiring the Empire Stores brand along with its customer base from rival Redcats.
During the same year, Home Delivery Network, the logistics arm of Shop Direct, was separated and rebranded as Yodel.
Following the January 2009 collapse of the Woolworths Group, Shop Direct secured ownership of the children's apparel brand Ladybird and the Woolworths trade name. The Woolworths online store launched in June 2009 but ceased operations in 2015; eventually, in 2021, the brand rights were sold to Woolworth in Germany.
At the beginning of 2009, Shop Direct forecasted that by 2010/11, online sales would constitute 70% of overall revenue—a milestone achieved by late 2009. By the close of the 2012/13 fiscal year, internet sales had grown to 78%.
In 2013, the company shortened its name to Shop Direct. On 27 October 2017, it issued its inaugural bond.
The year 2019 saw Shop Direct undergo another rebranding to become The Very Group.
In February 2024, The Very Group obtained a £125 million loan from The Carlyle Group and UAE-based International Media Investments, exchanging a stake in control to bolster working capital amid increasing interest rates. The following month, Deloitte resigned as auditors due to challenges accessing pertinent financial data caused by complex ownership involving multiple unaudited entities and an ultimate offshore proprietor.
Retailers
- Littlewoods.com
- Very.co.uk
- Very Ireland (https://www.very.ie)
Discontinued
- BargainCrazy
- ShopDirect.com
- Littlewoodsireland.ie
Brands
- V by Very
- Everyday
- Ladybird
Discontinued
- Additions Direct
- Abound
- Choice
- Great Universal
- Isme
- K&Co
- Kays
- Marshall Ward
Financial services
- Very Financial Services
Discontinued
- Everyday Financial Solutions
- Shop Direct Financial Services
Operations
Very.co.uk, Littlewoods.com, and Littlewoods Ireland offer a broad product range including apparel, footwear, electronics, home furnishings, gifts, beauty items, outdoor gear, seasonal products, and toys. Very Exclusive specializes in high-end fashion.
Shop Direct maintains a flagship own-label fashion brand called V by Very alongside Ladybird for children's wear. In addition to retail operations, the company manages financial services through Very Financial Services.
In July 2022, Lionel Desclée was appointed as group chief executive officer, succeeding Henry Birch who had served for over four years.
Locations
The Very Group’s headquarters is located at Skyways House—a £31 million refurbished aircraft hangar situated in Speke, southern Liverpool.
Order fulfillment primarily takes place at the 'Skygate' facility in Kegworth, Derbyshire, while bulky goods are dispatched from Bryn Lane in Wrexham. The former Shaw distribution centre in Oldham—originally composed of six mills—has been partially redeveloped with new purpose-built structures and remains among Europe’s largest retail distribution hubs. Returns processing is handled at Raven Mill in Chadderton.
On 9 May 2006, operations were consolidated by closing warehouses in Eccles, Wigan, and Worcester, centralizing activities at Shaw and Crompton. This resulted in approximately 1,200 job losses but also generated new employment opportunities at the Shaw National Distribution Centre.
In 2016, The Very Group inaugurated "The Cube," a 12,400 sq ft facility dedicated to training, conferences, and employee wellbeing at its Liverpool headquarters to promote workforce development and health.
Relocation of distribution operations
In the spring of 2018, The Very Group revealed intentions to shut down three distribution centres located in the North West by 2020. This move, aimed at streamlining their distribution network, could potentially affect up to 2,000 employees as the company focuses on centralizing its logistics within the East Midlands.