ELECTRONIC COMMERCE – AUSTRALIA

Life yet in department stores says Macy’s exec

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Original article by Patrick Hatch
The Age – Page: 20 : 16-Jan-18

Terry Lundgren, the executive chairman of US department store chain Macy’s, says Australian retailers should aim to compete with Amazon by offering unique products and a unique shopping experience. Lundgren is upbeat about the outlook for department stores, and says they can survive by adapting their business models to reflect changes in the sector. Macy’s has scaled back its store numbers in recent years and opened discount outlets in some of its stores. Myer Holdings has adopted the same strategies in Australia.

CORPORATES
RH MACY AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, BLOOMINGDALES, BLUEMERCURY, TJ MAXX, NATIONAL RETAILERS FEDERATION

Amazon to trigger big change in ad spending

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 20-Dec-17

UBS forecast that Amazon will boast revenue of $A3.5 billion in Australia by 2023, while Morgan Stanley expects it to be generating revenue of $A12 billion by 2026. Search marketing firm Adthena forecasts that Amazon’s share of internet searches in retail categories could be between 40 per cent and 70 per cent by 2023, which will require existing Australian retailers to change their advertising strategies and improve their online sites. PHD Media CEO Mark Coad notes that Amazon is effectively becoming a default search engine for some consumers when it comes to looking for products.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ADTHENA, PHD MEDIA, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, KOGAN.COM LIMITED – ASX KGN, THE GOOD GUYS, APPLIANCES ONLINE PTY LTD, M&C SAATCHI AGENCY PTY LTD, BOHEMIA

Amazon just warming up, warn analysts

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 7-Dec-17

Melanie Sanders of Bain & Company has forecast that e-commerce giant Amazon will boast Australian sales of between $A8bn and $A10bn within 5-10 years, making it the nation’s sixth-biggest retailer. Consumers have criticised the limited product range offered by Amazon when it officially launched in Australia, but Sanders argues that the company probably opted for a low-key launch in order to test its systems. Retail industry analysts have warned Australian retailers against becoming complacent based on Amazon’s local launch on 5 December, while Amazon itself says its sales for the day were higher than for any previous country launch.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, BAIN AND COMPANY, UGAM, WORLD FIRST AUSTRALIA, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, METCASH LIMITED – ASX MTS, IGA, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN

Local retailers brace as Amazon opens

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Original article by Chris Griffith, Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 2 : 5-Dec-17

The Australian retail website of e-commerce giant Amazon will be officially launched on 5 December. Consumers will be able to purchase a range of goods at significantly lower prices, with discounts of up to 30 per cent on some clothing and toy brands. Consumers will be able to purchase goods directly from Amazon or from merchants that sell their goods via the Amazon Marketplace. Consumers who order goods worth more than $A49 in total will receive free delivery. Amazon is forecast to gain up to $A200m worth of local sales at Christmas.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, OFFICEWORKS SUPERSTORES PTY LTD, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, BABY BUNTING GROUP LIMITED – ASX BBN, REBEL SPORT LIMITED, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, DAVID JONES LIMITED, CALVIN KLEIN INCORPORATED, TOMMY HILFIGER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FISHER-PRICE INCORPORATED, BONDS INDUSTRIES LIMITED, PUMA AUSTRALIA, LEGO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SOL-SANA, L’OREAL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SONOS INCORPORATED, SUNBEAM CORPORATION LIMITED

Woolies’ warning to suppliers

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 24-Nov-17

Woolworths chairman Gordon Cairns has urged food and grocery suppliers to think carefully before putting their goods for sale on Amazon. Speaking at its AGM on 23 November, he said retailers such as Woolworths might find that they could not compete with Amazon’s prices, and so might decide to start selling more of their private label goods in preference to brand-name products. CEO Brad Banducci said that Uber Eats could be as a big a threat to Woolworths’ business as Amazon over the next year.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, UBER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, BP AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Amazon’s retail invasion begins

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Original article by Sue Mitchell, James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 23-Nov-17

Australian retailing is set for its biggest shake-up in decades on 23 November, when Amazon "soft-launches" its electronic commerce operations, with a full launch expected on 24 November. Ben Gilbert from UBS says Amazon’s arrival in Australia is likely to have a detrimental impact on the profit margins of local retailers, as they will have to invest more in delivery and service, as well as lowering their prices. However, he believes investors have perhaps over-reacted to Amazon’s pending arrival in terms of how much they have pushed down the share price of local retailers.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, GREENCROSS LIMITED – ASX GXL, SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, DYSON APPLIANCES LIMITED, BREVILLE GROUP LIMITED – ASX BRG

Shopping centres will survive peak Amazon

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Original article by Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 24 : 13-Nov-17

The Australian real estate investment trust sector has responded more proactively to the threat posed to retail trade by Amazon than many have given it credit for, according to Pete Davidson of BT Investment Management. REIT stocks currently favoured by BTIM include Westfield, Mirvac and Charter Hall, along with Arena and Folkestone, which both have interests in childcare centres. Other stocks that BTIM like include Precinct Properties and Vital Healthcare.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, BT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BTT, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, CHARTER HALL GROUP – ASX CHC, ARENA REIT – ASX ARF, FOLKESTONE LIMITED – ASX FLK, PRECINCT PROPERTIES, VITAL HEALTHCARE PROPERTY TRUST, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, SCENTRE GROUP – ASX SCG, MITCHELL MONTAGU

Amazon threat and opportunity

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Original article by Simon Evans, Michael Bailey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 12 : 2-Nov-17

US-based e-commerce giant Amazon is widely tipped to enter the Australian market before the end of 2017. Delegates at a retail summit on 1 November were told that the arrival of a new competitor will be good for Australian retailers, with Launa Inman arguing that it will force them to improve their online offerings. Small Business & Family Enterprise Ombudsman Kate Carnell says Amazon will face close scrutiny to ensure that its contracts are fair, while Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman stressed the need to ensure that Amazon complies with Australia’s penalty rates regime.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS AND FAMILY ENTERPRISE OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED, BILLABONG INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX BBG, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, THEICONIC.COM.AU

Daigou retailer sells well on ASX debut

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Original article by Jessica Sier
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 6-Oct-17

So-called "daigou" retailer AuMake performed strongly on its sharemarket debut on 5 October. AuMake, which raised $A6 million from the issue of shares at $A0.08 each, traded as high as $A0.235. Founders Joshua Zhou and Lynn Zheng own 17 per cent of AuMake, while CVC is its biggest institutional investor. AuMake currently has six stores in Sydney and generates over $A13 million a year in revenue.

CORPORATES
AUMAKE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX AU8, CVC LIMITED – ASX CVC, ITM CORPORATION LIMITED, AUGEND LIMITED, TITAN ENERGY SERVICES, WECHAT, BELLAMY’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX BAL, THE A2 MILK COMPANY LIMITED – ASX A2M

Shoes Of Prey chasing the ‘athleisure’ dollar

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Original article by Michael Bailey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 20 : 19-Sep-17

Customised shoe maker Shoes of Prey is expanding into sneakers, the first unisex product it has offered since it was launched in 2009. Shoes of Prey is now solely an online retailer, having closed two outlets within David Jones and Nordstrom in October 2016. Founder Jodie Fox notes that this decision has helped to reduce its "cash burn", although she is unable to say when Shoes of Prey will become cash-flow positive.

CORPORATES
SHOES OF PREY PTY LTD, DAVID JONES LIMITED, NORDSTROM INCORPORATED, BLUE SKY PRIVATE EQUITY LIMITED, KHOSLA VENTURES, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, ADIDAS-SALOMON AG, PE NATION