Reader’s Digest to outsource some functions to London company
By JOHN GOLDEN

The Reader’s Digest Association Inc. has contracted with Great Britain’s Williams Lea company to provide outsourced printing and marketing for the Pleasantville-based publisher’s global direct-mail business.

Williams Lea, a global corporate information solutions provider with headquarters in London, will manage more than $1 billion in costs for Reader’s Digest operations in 19 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Latin America and including the U.S. and Canada. Through the multi-year partnership, Reader’s Digest expects to reduce its costs by some $130 million over the first three years.

Williams Lea was selected after Reader’s Digest conducted a global review of suppliers and outsourcing firms. With the print partnership, 100 Reader’s Digest employees will be transferred and 70 new staff will be added by Williams Lea. Six of the 19 locations recently began operating in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the U.S. The project is expected to be in full operation by March 2008.

“The print utility project with Williams Lea is an innovative partnership on a global scale in the handling of print promotion,” said Mary Berner, president and CEO at Reader’s Digest. “The project reflects RDA’s firm commitment to reduce costs and improve our business processes worldwide in support of our plan for sustainable, long-term growth.”

 

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