Shortlist Media has entered into consultation with staff members on the Never Underdressed team. In total 14 staff members are affected.
Mike Soutar, Chief Executive of Shortlist Media Ltd said, “Despite having met all its advertising targets in the first year, Never Underdressed was unable to secure a sufficiently large audience to sustain it as a business in the long term. What became clear as we looked ahead to next year and beyond was that the team had established a beautifully crafted, high-end product, but the ability to scale it was not there.
“The decision to close has not been taken lightly. We carried out an extensive examination of issues facing the site, but could not see a viable future for the luxury product we’ve all been so proud of since its inception. Rather than reposition Never Underdressed into something unrecognisable we are acting now to stem its losses.
“Shortlist Media Ltd is a launch-driven business and like any company that tries to innovate, not everything we do will succeed. The rest of our portfolio is having a record-breaking year and our focus will remain to invest in and build the power and reach of our existing brands, and to continue to seek out market gaps to explore with exciting new products. There are lessons to be learned from Never Underdressed and we will certainly reflect on how we can use this experience to build our launch capability in future.”
