Vicinity Centres invests in Click Frenzy-owner to power omnichannel plans

Dean Blake

28th Oct 2021

Vicinity Centres has partnered with and invested in Click Frenzy-owner Global Marketplace to grow its online capabilities and expand its omnichannel retail presence.

As part of the deal, Vicinity is taking a minority shareholding in the online business – nearly 20 per cent – which will go some way in facilitating the online presence it wants to provide retailers in its centres across Australia.

“Our investment in GMP and expansion into omnichannel retail introduces new instore and online sales opportunities, while also extending the reach of our retail partners and supplementing the 340 million visits we had to our centres in FY21,” said Vicinity’s chief innovation and information officer Justin Mills.

“[The deal] will provide retailers will efficient shopping centre-based fulfilment solutions to take advantage of our coast-to-coast physical footprint, with 66 per cent of the Australian population living within 30 minutes of our doors.”

The investment and partnership is a good deal for Global Marketplace, according to chief executive Nathan Brown, because it allows the business to extend its services into the physical retail space.

“[We’ll] add to Vicinity’s physical retail reach by offering established e-commerce brands, an audience of over 1.7 million online shoppers, and data and insights via Power Retail, Click Central, and two of the four biggest weeks on the Australian online retail calendar including Click Frenzy,” said Brown.

“Joining forces with Vicinity will facilitate GMP’s continued growth, enhance the performance of omnichannel retail in Australia, and deliver some ground-breaking new initiatives for retailers and customers.”