Request ID: FOI-2093-2324 Date published: 10 October 2023
You asked
Bond Street Tube station has been renamed ‘Burberry Street' by TfL for this year's London Fashion Week, as part of an advertising deal with fashion house, Burberry.
This has seen platform roundels renamed and painted knight blue on the platform. This is due to end today, September 19.
The information sought:
1. The total income received by TfL for this advertising deal. Please provide the name of the party who has paid this money to TfL.
2. If the income has not yet been received, please provide the agreed cost TfL will charge Burberry or its representatives for this advertising deal.
3. Please provide a copy of the contract or terms of the advertising deal which was agreed between Burberry/its representatives and TfL. Please include any conditions agreed.
4. The number of complaints received by TfL over the rebrand of Bond Street to ‘Burberry Street’ from the dates September 15 to September 19 (inclusive). Please break this down by day received.
5. The terms of the ‘accessibility review’ TfL is undertaking of the advertising partnership, and any results, findings or recommendations resulting from the review, For avoidance of doubt, the ‘terms’ should include the internal correspondence or the instructions sent to staff members asking them to carry out a review.
I note in writing this that the income received by TfL in other advertising deals has previously been made public - e.g. the £800,000 received as a result of IKEA’s advertising deal of the Tube map, or the £110,000 paid by Buxton Water under an advertising deal in 2015.
There is strong public interest in knowing the amount TfL receives for handing over its real estate to advertising, particularly given the accessibility concerns prompted by the Burberry/advertising arrangement.
6. Please provide a copy of the terms (both of the advertising deal and the accessibility review) in PDF or Word format, and any data supplied in an Excel-readable format.
We answered
Our Ref: FOI-2093-2324
Thank you for your request received on 19 September 2023 asking for information about the renaming of Bond Street Station to ‘Burberry Street’.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require. You asked for:
1. The total income received by TfL for this advertising deal. Please provide the name of the party who has paid this money to TfL.
TfL received £200k of sponsorship revenue from Burberry for the temporary station rename. Additionally Burberry paid for all costs associated with print and production. Full details of this agreement can be found at the link given below.
2. If the income has not yet been received, please provide the agreed cost TfL will charge Burberry or its representatives for this advertising deal.
Please see above.
3. Please provide a copy of the contract or terms of the advertising deal which was agreed between Burberry/its representatives and TfL. Please include any conditions agreed.
A copy of the contract is published on our website:
Under section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act, we are not obliged to provide you with information which is reasonably accessible by other means.
4. The number of complaints received by TfL over the rebrand of Bond Street to ‘Burberry Street’ from the dates September 15 to September 19 (inclusive). Please break this down by day received.
Please see the number of complaints received by our Customer Contact Centre in the table below:
Number of complaints received
15 September
17
16 September
11
17 September
4
18 September
19
19 September
6
In addition we received 15 FOI requests on this topic during the same period.
5. The terms of the ‘accessibility review’ TfL is undertaking of the advertising partnership, and any results, findings or recommendations resulting from the review, For avoidance of doubt, the ‘terms’ should include the internal correspondence or the instructions sent to staff members asking them to carry out a review.
At the end of every partnership and activation we hold a review meeting. We capture lessons learned and implement recommendations. Accessibility considerations are part of the discussion when relevant. We do not hold any correspondence asking to carry out a review as it is standard practice.
TfL has delivered a number of temporary station rename campaigns in recent years, including at Piccadilly Circus, Westminster and Green Park stations. However, it is clear from customer feedback that this creative activation at Bond Street led to some confusion as to whether they had arrived at the station. Following this activation, we will be reviewing customer and staff feedback to ensure that any future activations across our estate can look to avoid this.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Gemma Jacob Senior FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
