ValueVision rebranding ShopNBC to ShopHQ
ValueVision Media Inc., is changing its home-shopping retail operations to ShopHQ, dropping the ShopNBC brand it has used for more than 10 years, the Pioneer Press reports.
The new branding will be made gradually through the end of the year. The Eden Prairie-based company expects the transition to save about $4 million annually in licensing fees.
COO Carol Steinberg told the newspaper the company began exploring a name change when their licensing agreement with NBC was first up for renewal in 2010.
NBC's parent company, Comcast, has a 14 percent stake in ValueVision and supports the new name, the Pioneer Press notes.
ValueVision earned $1 million in its first-quarter, up 9.8 percent compared with an $8.7 million net loss a year ago. The Star Tribune says this is the firm's first quarterly profit in seven years.
“Over the past few years, under a new management team, we have substantially expanded our product assortment, enhanced the customer experience, and have grown our customer base to 1.2 million customers,” Keith Stewart, ValueVision CEO, said in a news release. “The ShopHQ brand clearly communicates to current and potential customers that we aim to be their place for shopping, wherever they are and whenever they need us—on TV or online and across a broad array of merchandise categories."
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