Press

Matthew Hardcastle is Managing Director of the Shopping.com UK network which includes leading shopping websites DoorOne.co.uk and Dealtime.co.uk.

Before his move to the Shopping.com UK Network, Matthew has most recently been overseeing the eBay UK New Marketplaces team, which included responsibility for eBay Motors, eBay Express and eBay Shops, enabling him to work closely with the Shopping.com network.

Matthew started his career in brand marketing with Cadbury Schweppes, latterly focusing on the development of new drinks businesses in Central and Eastern Europe. Following an MBA at INSEAD, Matthew spent three years with McKinsey & Co as a strategy consultant, before helping to establish, as Sales and Marketing Director, a successful e-tail fulfillment start-up, MetaPack. He joined eBay UK in mid-2004 as Head of Seller Development.

Shannon Clouston was appointed head of the new Merchant Sales and Client Services group for the Shopping.com UK Network in April 2007. Her appointment follows two years at Shopping.com, during which time she has held a number of key roles within the company, including director of communications.

Clouston’s primary objectives will be to review the company’s merchant offering, in addition to building the newly structured merchant sales and client services group. The restructure follows the appointment of Matthew Hardcastle to managing director of the Shopping.com Network in March 2007.

In reshaping the merchant offering, existing and new merchants joining the Shopping.com Network will benefit from a number of new initiatives designed to deliver a superior customer experience and ultimately maximise a merchant’s return on investment.

Clouston will also spearhead a new approach to merchant acquisition across the Shopping.com portfolio of sites, focusing on extending the number of merchants within the fastest growing categories in ecommerce: clothing, home and garden and health and beauty.

This new role strengthens Clouston’s ability to comment on industry trends, she therefore retains her consumer spokesperson role as the company’s ‘Chief Shopper’. As part of this role Clouston provides unique insight into what consumers are searching for and buying online to media within the U.K., U.S., Germany and Australia. It is believed that this consumer insight will also benefit those merchants looking to extend their online retail strategy.

Since joining the Shopping.com Network Clouston has developed a keen eye for trends and a personal penchant for shoes, clothing and electronics! Prior to this, she held a number of client services positions within two top 10 PR agencies within the U.S.