15 April 2010
Colt, a leading provider of business communications and IT managed services, today announced that Nectar, the leading coalition loyalty programme, has selected Colt for its managed hosting solution and the management of its communications network in Italy. Under the agreement Colt will host the Nectar collectors’ website, the Nectar call centre system and the backend loyalty engine used for data storage, processing and management.
The launch of Nectar Italy comes after the extensive success experienced with the UK operation, where 50% of households are signed up to the Nectar coalition loyalty programme. Since its launch in 2002 more than £1.3 billion in rewards, which include money off shopping, travel and general merchandise, has been redeemed by UK collectors.
Fiachra Woodman, European IT Director, Nectar said, “As we expand into new markets it is imperative that we work with partners we can trust. Colt was the obvious choice as it has a mature, well established operation in the Italian market and it is well supported by an Italian and English speaking team that communicates seamlessly. The Colt brand and the company’s proven track record inspires confidence in our partners – and when working with such renowned global brands we need to be sure we have the very best IT managed service in place.”
The multi-year partnership will see Colt manage Nectar’s private network, which includes managed data centre hosting services across two Colt data centres. Nectar Italy will make full use of Colt’s managed service offering, utilising server, storage network and security services to provide flexibility and scalability to the organisation. Colt’s wholly-owned European network and data centres ensures Nectar’s data is secure wherever it is on the network while Colt’s European reach makes it the ideal partner for Nectar as it delivers on its growth strategy.
Adrian Saunders, Managing Director of Colt Managed Services said: “The agreement with Nectar further endorses Colt’s position as Europe’s leading information delivery platform. Nectar is a brand associated with trust and reliability – which makes it essential that the backend operations are secure and run flawlessly. By using Colt’s managed hosting Nectar is free to focus on its key business objectives without having to dedicate costly resources to the management of data.”
Notes to editors
Nectar Italia is modelled on the successful Nectar coalition loyalty program that has signed up more than 50% of households in the UK. It will offer Italian consumers the opportunity to earn points at more than 5,000 retail outlets throughout Italy. Members will be able to redeem points for a wide range of rewards.
At launch, the partners in the Italian coalition include:
o Simply Sma stores, the number three grocer in Italy with 275 proprietary stores and 725 franchises branded Punto, Simply, Ipersimply, Sma, Cityper
o Auchan Hypermarkets with 50 stores nationwide
o Api Ip, one of the largest networks of fuel stations in Italy with 4200 stations
o So Oney which will launch the Nectar Italia co-branded credit card alongside its existing credit and charge cards
o UniEuro, electronics and electrical goods retailer with 97 direct stores and 70 franchises
o PC City, the IT specialists operating as a sister brand to UniEuro
o Hertz, Car Rental company with 230 agencies in Italy
For more information about Nectar Italia, please visit www.nectar.it
About Colt
Colt is Europe’s leading information delivery platform, enabling its customers to share, process and store their vital business information. Colt is an established leader in delivering integrated networking and IT managed services to major organisations, midsized businesses and wholesale customers. Colt operates a 13-country, 25,000km network that includes metropolitan area networks in 34 major European cities with direct fibre connections into 16,000 buildings and 19 Colt data centres.
Colt is listed on the London Stock Exchange (COLT). Information about Colt and its services can be found at www.colt.net
For more information, please contact:
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Colt
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Email: ColtInvestorRelations@colt.net
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