30 June 2005

Peer in at your Local Pier Store for the Latest in Home Design from around the Globe

The Pier Deploys Multimap’s “In-line” map service to help you to get there quickly!

Visitors to www.pier.co.uk can now view interactive maps showing the exact location of nearby stores, thanks to the “In-line” map service from Multimap, Europe’s leading online mapping provider. The popular homewares retailer chose Multimap as its mapping partner on the basis of its excellent track record for providing reliable and accurate mapping services to many of the world’s leading retailers. It is expected that, in addition to boosting brand loyalty, the new service will drive more visitors to The Pier stores across the UK and Ireland.

Visitors to www.pier.co.uk click on the “Store Locations” tab on the homepage to view a map of the UK and Ireland with icons representing store locations, and a drop-down list of the stores. They select a nearby store from the list or click on an icon of interest to access store details including the store manager’s name and telephone number, store address, opening hours, and a link to an interactive map, with zoom in/out functionality. To enter a new search, they click on the ‘Store Locations’ tab at the top of the results page, and start the process again.

Jeff Kelisky, Multimap’s chief executive officer, said, “In today’s marketplace, where a multi-channel strategy is one of the key drivers of success, it’s essential to deliver services that encourage online customers to proceed to make a purchase, whether it’s in an online or offline environment. The provision of accurate maps 24x7 is an essential part of boosting the ratio of surfers to physical visitors, and we are delighted that the Pier chose to work with Multimap to deliver the goods!”

Fiona Strang, Marketing Director, The Pier, said, “Prior to implementing Multimap’s ‘In-line’ map service, feedback from our customers was that it was sometimes difficult to find our stores, particularly in the case of non-high-street outlets. The store in Guildford, with its windy, cobbled streets, is a case in point. Now, thanks to Multimap’s content-rich and easy-to-read maps, we’re no longer hearing this comment. It couldn’t be easier or quicker for our customers to find their nearest stores and this, in turn, serves to increase footfall through the doors.

“We selected Multimap as online mapping provider due to its excellent track record for implementing robust and reliable mapping services on time, smoothly and to budget. We are delighted with our decision,” she continued.

About Multimap

Multimap is Europe's leading provider of mapping and location-based services. The company delivers more online maps, point-to-point driving directions and geo-spatial ("where's my nearest?") searches to more companies than any other supplier in Europe. All services are offered on mobile, PDA, kiosk, and interactive TV platforms and in multiple languages.

The public website, www.multimap.com, provides a range of free, useful services to assist with everyday life. Key features include street-level maps of Europe, USA, Canada, New Zealand and Australia; road maps of the world; door-to-door travel directions; aerial photographs; links to location information; and services such as hotel, restaurant and entertainment booking. The public site attracts over 8.6 million unique users, registers more than 160 million page impressions every month, and is one of the top 10 most visited websites in the UK. Multimap recently featured in The Sunday Times Fast Track 100 league table of fastest-growing unquoted UK companies across all sectors.

About The Pier

Homewares from The Pier capture the imagination in the same way as they would if you discovered them yourself while travelling. Everything tells a story – things live and breathe the magic of distant places and ways of life. Unrestricted by trends elsewhere in the High Street, there is always something new to see at The Pier – seasonal collections are inspired by different countries and continents as our buyers search for individual and interesting pieces from Africa to Vietnam to Italy. Different colours, styles, textiles and shapes are fused together so that it is easy for customers to put together a distinctive, individual and affordable look.

Established for 16 years now, The Pier discovered the world long before it became fashionable to do so. The Pier prides itself on sourcing genuine and unique pieces for its stores – our passion for product extends to reliable and responsible sourcing. The ethical accountability of The Pier has long been a foundation of the business, and while we have never marketed it overtly as a selling point, we have worked with UNICEF for the past 10 years, raising over £1 million to help children all over the world.

The Pier has 39 Stores, Pier Direct (Mail Order) and a website – www.pier.co.uk