Tiny puts Opus onto scrap heap

The OT group has scrapped its Opus brand and consolidated its entire PC operation under the Tiny name, as the retailer prepares for its global offensive and the introduction of business bays in store.

The Tiny business and professional division will replace the 16-year-old Opus brand on 22 June. The move will smooth the way for the expected launch of in-store business bays focused on the Soho and SME market. Replacing the Opus brand will also reduce marketing costs for the company's global expansion.

Jon Harris, managing director of Tiny, revealed: 'We are converting the Opus brand across to Tiny. We have significantly invested in the Tiny brand, so we decided to bring it all under one umbrella. We are doing well in China and although the US market is more mature, there is still a niche we fill, between mail order and retailers. We are a manufacturer/retailer.'

Tiny is pursuing an aggressive store opening policy in the UK, but it also has nine showrooms in Hong Kong and one in mainland China, where it is planning 20 more stores. Tiny has also recently opened its first store in the US, in Washington State.

According to figures from Romtec for the final quarter of 1997 in the UK, Tiny was behind Dell, Compaq, Hewlett Packard and IBM, but substantially ahead of Gateway.

Phil Burnham, analyst at Romtec, said: 'It is doing so well. In Q4 there were a lot of inventory problems in the retail channel, but Tiny made a killing. Consolidating the whole range under one brand is a good move. It has the best of both worlds, selling through retail and direct.

'It will also have a level of expertise in store that you don't normally see in retail outlets, which is attractive to consumers, especially the second-time buyer.'

The parent company, OT Group will retain its name. The turnover for Tiny was £165 million for the year ending 31 January, an increase of more than £60 million.