JB Hi-Fi growth slows as competition intensifies

Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 16 : 14-Aug-18

Consumer electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi has posted a 2017-18 underlying net profit of $233.2m, which is 12.3 per cent higher than previously. Group earnings rose 14.5 per cent to $350.6m, while its Australian division’s earnings were 11.4 per cent higher at $292.3m. Sales grew by 21.8 per cent in 2017-18, but expectations of competition from key rivals and fewer store openings have prompted the company to pare back its sales growth forecast to just 3.6 per cent in 2018-19. Shareholders will receive a full-year dividend of $0.132 per share.

CORPORATES
JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, THE GOOD GUYS, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, MARTIN CURRIE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Williams top shoe store ahead of The Athlete’s Foot

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Aug-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that Williams has Australia’s most satisfied shoe store customers, with a customer satisfaction rating of 90.4% in June 2018, an increase of 8% from a year ago. The Athlete’s Foot improved its customer satisfaction by 3% from a year ago to 89.6%, while customer satisfaction for third-placed Spend-less Shoes declined by 5% over the last year to 81%. Analysing shows that nearly 1.4 million Australians shop at a shore store in an average four weeks. Over three-fifths of shoppers at Australian shoe stores are women, equating to around 830,000 shoppers, compared to only 540,000 men.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, WILLIAMS, THE ATHLETE’S FOOT AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SPENDLESS SHOES PTY LTD

Autobarn overtakes Supercheap Auto for Auto store satisfaction

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Jul-18

Autobarn has won Roy Morgan’s Auto Store Customer Satisfaction Award for June 2018, with a customer satisfaction rating of 90.1%. Autobarn has increased its customer satisfaction by 8.2% over the last year, and it has now won three monthly customer satisfaction awards in 2018. Runner-up Supercheap Auto has also increased its customer satisfaction over the last year (up 2.8% to 88.4%) while third-placed Repco has seen a decline in customer satisfaction (down 1.5% to 84.1%). Analysis shows that more than three million Australians shop at an Auto store in an average month; over 70% (2.16 million) are men, while less than 30% are women (920,000). The generations most likely to shop at Auto Stores are Generation X (840,000), Baby Boomers (800,000) and Millennials (730,000); these three generations comprising over three-quarters of the overall Auto Store market.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUTOBARN PTY LTD, SUPER CHEAP AUTO, REPCO

Myer to shed head office jobs but keep stores

Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 20-Jul-18

Department store group Myer has reduced staff numbers at its head office in Melbourne’s Docklands precinct by about 30 per cent in recent years, and CEO John King is expected to seek further job cuts. However, sources have rejected suggestions that up to 50 per cent of head office staff could be retrenched. King also intends to reduce the number of Myer stores, although he is expected to wait until existing leases expire. Meanwhile, David Jones has posted 2.2 per cent growth in sales for the first half of 2018, and growth of 2.7 per cent in same-store sales. Full-year sales were 0.9 per cent lower than previously.

CORPORATES
MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, DAVID JONES LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS HOLDINGS LIMITED, HOUSE OF FRASER HOLDINGS PLC, SEARS HOLDINGS, KMART CORPORATION, LATITUDE FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED, PREMIER INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX PMV, VICTORIA RACING CLUB LIMITED

Primed for retail action as Amazon slashes prices up to 70pc

Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 17-Jul-18

Amazon launched its first Prime Day promotion in Australia on 16 July, with the e-commerce giant cutting prices by up to 70 per cent. Amazon applied its biggest discounts to its own products, including its Echo Plus and Echo Dot speakers. Brands that Amazon reduced prices on included Lorna Jane, Nike, Tommy Hilfiger and Sony, while Myer, Kmart and Woolworths are among the Australian retailers that it undercut. Amazon’s Australian Prime Day will run for 36 hours; its first Prime Day was launched in the US in 2015.

CORPORATES
AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, LORNA JANE PTY LTD, NIKE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TOMMY HILFIGER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SONY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, KOGAN.COM LIMITED – ASX KGN, CATCH-OF-THE-DAY.COM.AU, BABY BUNTING GROUP LIMITED – ASX BBN, DAVID JONES LIMITED, MINDSHARE, EUROMONITOR, EBAY AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND PTY LTD, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Rockmans, Jeanswest, Sportsgirl & Just Jeans lead for customer satisfaction

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 16-Jul-18

Rockmans has won Roy Morgan’s Clothing Store Customer Satisfaction Award for May 2018, with a customer satisfaction rating of 91.9% (up 3.1% in the last 12 months). It is followed by Jeanswest on 91.3% (up 2.4%) and Sportsgirl on 90.1% (up 1.9%). The biggest improver over the last year is Just Jeans, which has improved its customer satisfaction by 8.3% to 89.1%, just ahead of another big improver, Katies (up 6.2% to 89%). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine notes that Roy Morgan’s recent surveys on "Trust" and "Distrust" have revealed that retailers consistently perform strongly as one of the most trusted industries in Australia.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, ROCKMANS STORES LIMITED, JEANSWEST CORPORATION PTY LTD, SPORTSGIRL, JUST JEANS PTY LTD, KATIES FASHIONS (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Woolworths, Caltex in food-fuel deal with $2bn IPO on the cards

Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 19 & 31 : 6-Jul-18

Grocery giant Woolworths will expand its existing alliance with fuel retailer Caltex Australia. The deal includes a 15-year wholesale fuel supply agreement, the extension of Woolworths’ customer loyalty program to more than 700 Caltex petrol station and the rebranding of up to 250 Caltex outlets under Woolworths’ Metro banner. Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci says the petrol station joint venture could ultimately be spun off, potentially within the next 12 months.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, BP AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Godfreys’ 99-year-old owner plans to fight back

Original article by Simon Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 6-Jul-18

Vacuum cleaner retailer Godfreys Group will be delisted on 6 July, following its purchase by Arcadia Financial for just $13.5 million. Arcade Finance is controlled by John Johnston, who joined Godfreys in 1936. Johnston told Godfreys CEO John Hardy during a recent meeting that he thinks Godfreys should be making more use of social media. Godfreys had a 40 per cent share of the $3 billion vacuum cleaner market in 2006, but Hardy thinks it is now down to 18 per cent.

CORPORATES
GODFREYS GROUP LIMITED – ASX GFY, ARCADE FINANCE PTY LTD, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, THE GOOD GUYS, BARBEQUES GALORE PTY LTD, SUPER A-MART PTY LTD, LE CORNU LEWIS HANCOCK

Foodland leads, Woolworths the biggest improver

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that customer satisfaction with Foodland in the six months to May was 95.5%. It was again the top performer among the big five supermarkets, despite showing a decline of 2.3% points over the last 12 months. Aldi had a customer satisfaction rating of 91.8%, followed by Woolworths (90.0%), Coles (88.5%) and IGA (85.4%). These are the latest results from Roy Morgan’s "Retail Satisfaction Report-Supermarkets", which is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own home, including over 11,000 main supermarket shoppers.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, FOODLAND AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, IGA

It’s Official: More than half the dollars spent on packaged alcohol go through the Woolworths Group

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 25-Jun-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that supermarket sales account for nearly 75% of the $15.5bn alcohol market in Australia. Woolworths Group holds 50.1% of the total amount spent on packaged alcoholic beverages in an average week, with its market share rising by 1.5% in the 12 months to March 2018. Dan Murphy’s had the biggest increase in share of market for Woolworths Group, up 1.2%. Coles Group saw a small decline in share of market for alcohol retail, with small gains for Liquorland and Vintage Cellars and a drop of 1.2% in share of market at First Choice. These are the latest figures from the Roy Morgan Alcohol Retail Currency Report, which is based on in-depth personal interviews with 3,650 Australians aged 18+ who have recently bought packaged alcohol.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, DAN MURPHY’S, COLES GROUP LIMITED, LIQUORLAND (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, VINTAGE CELLARS (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, FIRST CHOICE LIQUOR SUPERSTORE