British dotcom sidles up to traditional brands

LONDON - Lastminute.com, the much-hyped British online retailer, is set to unveil a new raft of partnerships with traditional "bricks and mortar" brands in a bid to boost awareness and drive traffic to its site.

The company is in the process of finalising deals with a number of brands, including Kellogg's, Thorntons, and soft drinks company AG Barr, distributors of Orangina.

It is also extending an agreement with The Carphone Warehouse.

The cross-marketing deals are designed to help boost Lastminute.com's offline visibility, giving them in-store and on-pack branding.

The moves come at a time when the company, along with other high-profile dotcoms, is seeking to cut its advertising costs in order to reduce its debilitating cash burn.

Last year, in one of the first deals of its kind, Lastminute's Martha Lane Fox and Brent Hoberman launched a co-promotion with food giant Nestlé, which saw the dotcom promoted on 50 million chocolate bars.

More recently the online retailer has inked a more risqué Valentine's Day co-promotion with Ann Summers.

Lastminute.com is still predominantly known for its holiday booking service, but over the last year it has sought to expand its range of products and now offers a gift and auction service as well as a restaurant and ticket booking service.

By the end of March this year Lastminute.com had around 3.1 million registered users, with the most recent quarterly figures showing 50 per cent of goods sold were non-travel related.

- INDEPENDENT