JML (John Mills Limited) is a consumer product company based around the UK specialising in the promotion of products in retail stores with video screens. The company develops products in the categories of homewares, health & beauty, DIY and gifts and sells them through its website, TV channels and retail stores. In addition to its own products, JML distributes products from other international

direct response television Direct response television (DRTV) is any television advertising that asks consumers to respond directly to the company — usually either by calling a toll-free telephone number, sending an SMS message, or by visiting a web site. This is a form ...

(DRTV) suppliers.

History

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

founded JML in the basement of his house in Camden in 1986. Reverting to a model of selling at trade shows, the company expanded into direct-to-consumer selling after a trial involving end-of-aisle video demonstrations in third party-owned retail shops. JML first established its headquarters in

Kentish Town Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town, close to Hampstead Heath. Kentish Town likely derives its name from Ken-ditch or Caen-ditch, meaning the "bed of a waterw ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

. This was home to one third of the company's workforce, handling product development, marketing, direct-to-consumer marketing, video production, international sales and broadcast operations. In 2016, JML moved its headquarters to

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district in West London, split between the London Borough of Hounslow, London Boroughs of Hounslow and London Borough of Ealing, Ealing. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist Wi ...

, West London, as part of its expansion plans. JML's fulfilment centre is based in the

Port of Tyne The Port of Tyne comprises the commercial docks on and around the River Tyne in Tyne and Wear in the northeast of England. History There has been a port on the Tyne at least since the Romans used their settlement of Arbeia to supply the g ...

, comprising a 24/7

call centre A call centre ( Commonwealth spelling) or call center ( American spelling; see spelling differences) is a managed capability that can be centralised or remote that is used for receiving or transmitting a large volume of enquiries by telephone ...

, retail sales team,

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the rural–urban fringe, out ...

and distribution facility. In 2010, it was named as one of Europe's Top 500 Growth Companies. In June 2019 JML's current CEO, Ken Daly, was elected as Chairman of the Europe Board of Directors for the ERA (Electronic Retailing Association).

Divisions

JML Retail

JML's core business is retail screen promotions, which can be found in various UK and Irish retailers including

Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...

Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...

Robert Dyas Robert Dyas () is a British retailer, originally founded in London in 1872 as an ironmongery. It operates 93 high street stores, predominately in Southern England, as well as an online business. Its product range consists of home improvement items ...

, Argos,

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

and Wilko.

JML Direct

The brand also has a

direct-to-consumer Direct-to-consumer (DTC or D2C) or business-to-consumer (B2C) is the business model of selling products directly to customers and thereby bypassing any third-party retailers, wholesalers, or middlemen. Direct-to-consumer sales are usually transa ...

business through its

JML Direct TV JML Direct TV was a television shopping channel owned by John Mills Limited, JML Direct Limited that mainly broadcasts infomercials featuring various products from the company. The channel was broadcast on Sky UK, Sky and Freesat. JML Direct ...

shopping channel Shopping channels (also referred to in British English as teleshopping) are television programs or specialty channels dedicated to home shopping. These channels typically feature live presentations and product demonstrations, with on-air hosts a ...

(operating on Sky 661 and Freesat 806), website and bi-yearly catalogue. The UK

infomercial An infomercial is a form of television commercial that resembles regular TV programming yet is intended to promote or sell a product, service or idea. It generally includes a toll-free telephone number or website. Most often used as a form of di ...

s are largely produced in-house while featuring product-demonstration video content from across the globe. JML also broadcasts its marketing ventures through third parties.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.jmldirect.com/ Companies based in the London Borough of Hounslow Retail companies established in 1986 Mail-order retailers