// Intu creates series of senior roles to transform how it will work with retail brands and boost their performance at its centres
// It includes four heads of partnerships, who will report to Intu customer performance director Rebecca Ryman
// Intu also set to launch Fashion House, a UK-first store dedicated to online fashion labels
Intu has created a new team and series of senior roles to transform how it will work with retail and leisure brands and boost their performance at its portfolio of shopping centres.
The new team includes four heads of partnerships who will bolster relations and grow new business across a range of sectors as part of Intu’s new customer performance directorate.
House of Fraser’s former retail operations director Sally Haskayne has been appointed head of fashion partnerships, while the Jockey Club’s former head of partnerships Bruce Gardner will lead on strengthening and building new relationships with consumer goods brands.
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Christopher Baker and Nick Round have moved over from Intu’s asset management team to take on the roles of head of lifestyle partnerships and head of food, beverage and leisure partnerships respectively.
Meanwhile, James Miller has been appointed as head of analytics and insight with responsibility for using data to deliver commercial value for Intu and the many brands it works with.
He joins the team from data consultancy firm Starcount and prior to that was head of retail insight at Experian.
The four new appointments will report to Intu customer performance director Rebecca Ryman, who previously ran the leasing strategies for a number of centres including the extensions of Intu Lakeside and Intu Watford.
The customer performance directorate was formed as part of Intu’s five-year strategy last year to drive the performance of its rent-paying customers and attract more online brands to its shopping centres.
Intu’s omnichannel team and its retail innovation team have also been brought into the customer performance directorate as part of a drive to bring more online brands and new in-store propositions to Intu shopping centres.
The news came with the announcement of Fashion House, a UK-first store dedicated to fast-growing online fashion labels, that is set to launch at Intu Lakeside later this year.
“We have built a team of sector specialists who will drive more value for our rent-paying customers and attract new brands to our centres for the first time,” Ryman said.
“We will work closely with brands to develop and share new insight, products and services that will ensure their Intu locations are their most successful.”
Intu chief executive Matthew Roberts said: “We recognise that we need to work more collaboratively with our rent-paying customers and deliver additional value to help them navigate the challenges currently facing the sector.
“This will allow us to deliver an important part of Intu’s strategy by ensuring all our customers flourish.”
The new hires follow the announcement that Intu also has brought together teams including development, asset management and commercialisation into a centre performance directorate to accelerate new enhancements and activities.
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