Nisa Chief Executive Neil Turton is to stand down to launch him! International with former him! MD Tom Fender. The new venture is backed by William Reed.
The company will act as a new and autonomous sister company to him! research & consulting UK, providing clients with sector, shopper and retailer insights from convenience and food-to-go markets around the world.
Explaining the venture, Turton and Fender pointed out that convenience retailing is one of the biggest growth trends in food retailing, not just in the UK, or even Europe, but globally, as consumer lifestyle changes mean shoppers are looking to “top-up” little and often, locally, with food-to-go and meal solutions in high demand. With the pace of change so fast, suppliers and retailers need shopper insights to shape their strategies.
Turton said: “We also wanted to work under the him! brand because there has been no company which has focused so obsessively on small format shoppers, for so long, than him! in the UK. Him! is famous for compelling shopper insights. We want to take the great work him! does in the UK and internationalise it.”
Both men travel regularly around the world to see new store formats and retail innovations and both said that there are some outstanding operators in many markets – some of which are virtually on our doorstep, some further afield. “Each market is at different stages of the convenience evolution – what we want to do is help all convenience operators around the world fast-track their growth and leverage every opportunity that presents itself,” added Turton.
him! international will interview shoppers around the world to help retailers and suppliers operating in those countries implement strategies based on shopper insight.
Different retailers can learn from other retailers within one market. him! international aims to help entire country markets learn from other markets too.
