Dunelm is a British homewares and furnishings retailer founded in 1979 by husband and wife Bill and Jeany Adderley. The business has been transformed as a result of the acquisition of the Worldstores Group – comprising the Worldstores, Achica and Kiddicare etail brands – towards the end of 2016, in an £8.5m deal that more than doubled the size of its online business. The main benefit from the acquisition was the access to technology and digital development capabilities. Importantly, it sees the technology platform acquired with Worldstores as a real asset. The retailer confirmed in December 2019 that it had successfully transitioned all of its customers to its new digital platform, completing the three-year technology transformation programme. This should enable the retailer to launch click and collect and improve delivery options. The retailer is also continuing to invest in staff training, including the use of tablets in store, as well as further investment in data insights to help improve the customer experience.
Dunelm has posted a surge in sales driven by volume and growth across both in-store and digital channels in the third quarter, ending March this year.
Dunelm has announced that a non-exec director has stepped down from the board to take on a full-time role as the retailer’s customer director.
Four months on from Retail Week’s groundbreaking Sustainability Summit, Dunelm head of climate change and sustainability Christina Downend and LoweConex divisional sales director Orla McGreevy join Retail Week to discuss how the industry is progressing sustainability and where retailers can generate the biggest wins.
Dunelm has recorded strong sales growth and market share gains in both homewares and furniture markets.
Homewares giant Dunelm has drafted in two new board members with strong digital commerce backgrounds.
Advertisement
