Checkout Girl: Nadine Coyle inks Tesco deal

Source: MW

08:22 | Monday September 6, 2010

 

Nadine Coyle's debut album is to receive a massive promotional push from Tesco, including possible link-ups with brands, after the retailer confirmed it had signed a deal with the Girls Aloud singer.

 

Coyle’s debut album Insatiable will be released on her own Black Pen label on November 8, via an exclusive distribution deal with Tesco in the UK and Ireland.

 

Digital plans have yet to be announced – while Tesco’s recent Faithless CD exclusive was sold digitally through iTunes, Tesco entertainment director Rob Salter says the decision on Insatiable will be made “based on what is right for the project and the artist, as well as Tesco”.

 

Coyle’s manager Bruce Garfield says there was significant interest in releasing her debut album from major labels, including Universal, home to Girls Aloud and Cheryl Cole. However, he says Coyle picked Tesco – the biggest retailer in the UK – because of its commitment to the artist.

 

“It wasn’t just waving chequebooks at her,” he says. “Tesco has a massive marketing campaign, which is innovative. It uses every aspect of Tesco’s canopy of services: the entertainment section, the cosmetics section, Tesco card holders. Millions of people go to Tesco and they are one of the biggest advertisers on TV.”

 

“There are so many methods of cross-promotion,” Garfield adds, pointing to Tesco’s decision to sell the Faithless album via its petrol stations. “Nadine is putting the launch of the rest of her life in the hands of a company that she trusts. And we will get their undivided attention.”

 

Exact marketing plans are still to be confirmed but Salter says Tesco will use “all of the same” avenues it used to promote recent Faithless and Simply Red album exclusives “and some more”. “There are very big plans around the Nadine album using all of the resources that are available to us,” he adds. “More stores, more advertising, more above-the-line.”

 

Tesco has also allowed Garfield to assemble a promotions team around Coyle using what he calls “the best independent people in town”.

 

The veteran music business executive – his career includes stints at Capitol and managing Sinead O’ Connor – is full of praise for Tesco, which he says represents “the perfect match” for Coyle. “Tesco are Nadine’s target audience: young women and women in their early twenties,” he explains. “That is the Tesco customer.”

 

He also believes the retailer’s close association with the brands it sells will benefit the launch of Coyle’s solo career. “Artists and rec-ord companies are seeking brands. Tesco sells more of these products than every other retailer [in the UK]. They are closer to brands to do cross promotion than any label,” he says.

 

 

The album was written by Coyle herself, with co-writes from the likes of Guy Chambers, Toby Gad and Desmond Child. It was produced by Chambers, William Orbit and newcomer Ricci Riccardi.

 

“People say she has the vibrancy of an artist in the earliest days of her career when they are the freshest,” says Garfield. “Insatiable [also the name of the single, which precedes the album on November 1] has a completely innovative sound.”

 

“I think it is a great mix of music,” adds Salter. “My children love it and they keep playing it over and over. That is very encouraging.”

 

Insatiable will be Tesco’s third album exclusive, following Faithless’s The Dance and Simply Red’s Songs Of Love earlier this year. The former has sold almost 90,000 copies in the UK, while the latter has shifted 56,000 to date.

 

The move is part of a wider entertainment strategy at Tesco, which has also seen the supermarket get into film production and exclusively selling Robbie Williams’ new autobiography. And while this has not always proved popular with everyone in the music industry – Salter says he has “struggled” to work with artists signed to labels, with Faithless, Simply Red and Coyle all self-releasing their albums – the entertainment director believes such exclusives are key for Tesco’s ongoing involvement with music.

 

“We have had honest discussions with record companies. We know it can be difficult for them and we empathise with that. But the alternative is we see music continue to decline in terms of the space we give it in our stores,” he says.

 

“The pressures on space in retail are huge. And there are lots of other categories that would like the space that we have.”

 

Salter says that Tesco has more album exclusives up its sleeve – although he will not reveal who – but stresses that they will be limited to around three or four a year.

Looking at the sales for Faithless and SR worry me. Tesco will push it for a few days and move onto their next offer. People will try going elsewhere, not realise and give up. I do think this is shooting yourself in the foot. Hope I'm proven wrong.

The first single sounds brilliant too, so I hope it still manages to do ok!

I was feeling okay about it until I read those album figures. She's going to need more than 56,000 in a WEEK if she's going to impact well in November.

This does seem worrying, i suppose if she's not after #1s or huge sales this is the right way to go...

:mellow:

 

There again, Tesco must be a huge retailer in the Christmas market? So, it could end up working very well.

This does seem worrying, i suppose if she's not after #1s or huge sales this is the right way to go...

:mellow:

 

There again, Tesco must be a huge retailer in the Christmas market? So, it could end up working very well.

 

For turkey's, wrapping paper, and plastic toys :(

if the album is placed by checkouts in the christmas season nadine will be laughing

I love that she started her own label and wrote/co wrote the whole album!

sales should NOT matter that much IMO.

Seeing those album sales for Faithless and Simply Red have made me quite worried about Nadine's decision to release this only in Tesco. Considering she is releasing in November, near the time with the biggest sales, she will need more than 100,000 sales in the first week if she wants the #1 album.

Like i said in another thread... tesco is a powerhouse and it will market her aggressively, the won't invest in somebody as big as nadine and let her flop... On top of that Simply Red and Faithless haven't been exactly big for many years so the interest wasn't there! Nadine is from one of the UK's bigget girl groups/ one of the most talked about celebs in the gossip mags, she is much more lucrative for Tesco + the others were released on Itunes too, i wouldn't worry about the Tesco thing! They have so much money and promotional tactics... instore signings/posters all over the shop/none stop announcements/ album next to tills/ tv adverts on every break/radio/ itunes... plus they obviously are taking this serious and wanting this to work else they would have stopped after faithless etc What other artists gets this amount behind them? Not sharing with anybody else! I wouldn't be surprised if Tesco don't stock Cheryl ha

Exactly, Faithless and Simply Red aren't big artists now like they once were but Faithless did pretty well considering their previous album was a total flop.

 

I'm sure they know what they're doing and I respect her a lot for the reasons she chose to do this, we shouldn't condemn them unless it actually does go tits up.

I thought it was a bad idea at first, but I see more Tesco adverts on TV than for HMV, they will try and give huge promotion towards the album, and Tesco is massive. There are about seven within a 30min drive from my house. Yet only a couple of Morrisons, probably only one Asda, and one or two Sainsburys (not big Tesco of course, some will be express).