Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide Press Releases

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide today announced a restructure of its commercial e-commerce portal, beeb.com. It also announced that Julian Turner, Chief Executive of beeb Ventures Limited, had decided to step down from his role.

Beeb Ventures Limited is the joint venture company which was formed in August 2000 between Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide and US-based technology investor TH Lee Putnam Ventures and which encompasses the e-commerce portal beeb.com and ISP beeb.net. Launched originally in 1997, beeb.com was subsequently re-positioned as an e-commerce portal and since then has been consistently ranked in the top 20 most visited UK retail sites. Traffic to the site increased by 50% in the last financial year and beeb.com currently has over 110 e-commerce partners.

The restructure comes as a result of the forthcoming completion of the extensive re-design of its site. As part of its long term repositioning, beeb has been undertaking a major redesign of both the customer facing aspects and the operations of its site. The first phase was completed in October 2001, when the site was re-launched with a new dynamic interface. The final phase, which will be completed in April 2002, will result in a simplified 'user journey' giving customers greater flexibility in accessing retail products, as well as greater speed to market and an improved ability to respond to our commerce partners' requirements.

Completion of the final phase of the project will also deliver significant benefits in standardising key operating processes. This will therefore result in a variety of operational and commercial efficiencies which will mean a reduction of around 50% of the 80 strong workforce across the business.

Commenting on the re-structure, Julian said, "I have moved beeb a long way since taking over in September 2000. As a result the company now operates against a dramatically more efficient business model, having made a significant investment in the technology platform to enable a smooth transition to a lower cost base."

He commented further "My decision to resign, coupled with the removal of a good deal of other costs, is a reflection of the execution and completion of the vision I had for beeb when I took over. These changes in cost structure will give beeb the time to prove itself as the UK's leading shopping portal."

The day-to-day operation of the business will be handled by Kym Niblock, Chief Operating Officer. Rupert Gavin, CEO of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide and Chairman of bVL, will take over as Executive Chairman and will assume the strategic responsibilities previously held by Julian Turner.

Rupert Gavin said, "Julian has done a terrific job in getting beeb into the position it is in today and the cost cuts that his plans have enabled, put beeb in a stronger position than ever to dominate the e-commerce business, in which it is already a clear leader. Both the Board and shareholders of bVL would like to thank Julian for all his efforts to date and wish him every success with future ventures and projects."

On the restructure of beeb.com, Rupert Gavin said, "We will be talking to staff in depth about the restructure over the next few weeks."

Sharon Pipe, Managing Director, TH Lee Putnam Ventures, said, "Julian is to be commended for his achievements with beeb.com, not only in the on-going performance of the site, but in skilfully steering it through the redesign so that it can both operate efficiently and continue to hold its place as one of the top retail sites in the UK."