06 Sep Intu launches a credit card in collaboration with MBNA
Shoppers at intu Lakeside can benefit from a new, pioneering credit card as part of the first commercial agreement between shopping centre owner intu and the credit card experts MBNA.
The new credit card will offer card holders in Essex a range of benefits whenever they spend, including intu gift cards and access to exclusive shopping offers from entertainment to leisure and dining.
The deal is believed to be the first of its kind between a credit card provider and a shopping centre owner in the UK.
“Thanks to intu’s nationwide scale and consumer facing brand, we’ve been able to team up with the UK’s leading credit card experts MBNA to create a sector first commercial agreement.” said Trevor Pereira, intu’s digital and commercial director.
“Our combined expertise in retailing, customer experience, payments and rewards has enabled us to create something very special which shoppers in Essex can benefit from. With the new intu credit card, we’ll be extending our customer-first approach straight to the wallets of our customers, providing them with moments of delight through our value-added benefits and rewards which we have developed through the relationships we have in retail and leisure.”
Michael Donald, MBNA’s Commercial and Payments executive, commented: “We’re delighted to be the first credit card provider in the UK to collaborate with a market-leading shopping centre owner in a new deal that brings an exciting mix of rewards and benefits to customers. While many other credit card providers have been downgrading their loyalty and reward programmes or exiting this market completely, MBNA has worked with intu to take a completely fresh approach for customers.”
He added: “The result is the new intu credit card, the first of a ‘new breed’ of reward credit cards – you might say it’s ‘bursting with benefits.’ We have the expertise to deliver compelling financial products, tailored around the things customers have been telling us are important to them. With their help, we’ve put together an exciting range of unique offers and exclusive benefits.”
Over 35 million customers – equivalent to more than half the nation’s population – visit intu’s UK shopping centres every year which include intu Lakeside, intu Trafford Centre (Manchester), intu Metrocentre (Newcastle) and intu Victoria Centre (Nottingham). All in all, intu customers make an incredible 400 million centre visits a year.
This new collaboration opens up a major new market for MBNA, after successfully engaging with a range of leading brands over the years. Consumer insight from MBNA has identified this as a significant market opportunity for pioneering, new financial products that will be beneficial for customers.
The new intu credit card
The new intu credit card is available for eligible new customers to apply for from today (Monday, 5 September). Visit www.intu.co.uk/creditcard for more information or full terms and conditions.
