HMV group head of CRM Matt Button has left the beleaguered music and entertainment retailer after three and a half years, after accepting redundancy.
Button, a well-known figure in the DM industry, was instrumental in the roll out of PureHMV, the company’s insight and loyalty programme. He has picked up a number of awards during his career, including DMAs, Data Strategy and Precision Marketing Awards, with CreatorMail and Partners Andrews Aldridge.
His departure has sparked a shake-up at the business, bringing together data insight and online under a new senior role, with former Asda marketer Paul Stevens becoming head of insight and ecommerce.
Button started his career in 1987 at Video Arts, moving to KLM in 1990 as marketing communications manager. In 1997, Button joined Lexus GB as head of CRM and database marketing and worked closely with Partners.
After just over seven years, he landed what was seen as his dream job in October 2008 at HMV – Button has a passion for music and has played drums in a number of bands.
By August 2010, he had become group head of CRM for both HMV and Waterstone’s, although his role has been reduced with the offloading of Waterstone’s to A&NN Capital Fund Management.
In one recommendation on LinkedIn, HMV advertising manager Duncan Grant said: “Matt’s great knowledge of CRM combines with his excellent communication skills, meaning it’s easy to understand the insight he delivers and build it into actions.
“His work on launching and managing PureHMV gave HMV the consumer insight it had never had. His ability to share his passion and insight allowed learnings to be applied beyond the scheme and inform all of our customer facing communication. Matt’s style and willingness to help makes him a pleasure to work with.”
