RETAIL TRADE – AUSTRALIA

Exploited 7-Eleven workers will not lose their visas

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 21-Dec-15

The Australian Government has advised that foreign workers who were underpaid by 7-Eleven will not have their visas cancelled if they assist with investigations into the scandal. Giri Sivaraman of law firm Maurice Blackburn says this is likely to encourage more exploited workers to come forward. The Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association claims that wage exploitation is still occurring.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Costco profit surges as sales exceed $1b

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 21-Dec-15

Costco Wholesale Australia has posted a pre-tax profit of $A22.7m for the year ended August 2015, following a loss of $A10.7m previously. The grocery retailer’s revenue rose from $A878.5m to $A1.323bn, while its gross margin increased from 14.3 per cent to 14.6 per cent. IBISWorld estimates that Costco now boasts about 1.2 per cent of Australia’s grocery market, six years after opening its first Australian store.

CORPORATES
COSTCO WHOLESALE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, IBISWORLD PTY LTD, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, DAVID JONES LIMITED, COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION

Woolies, Coles and Aldi caught up in child labour scandal

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Original article by Sarah Danckert
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 15-Dec-15

Australian supermarket groups Coles, Woolworths and Aldi will review their supply chains after revealing that they source frozen prawns from a Thailand-based company that has been accused of using forced labour. It is also alleged that Thai Union uses child labour at a prawn peeling factory in the city of Samut Sakhon. Thai Union is one of the world’s largest seafood suppliers.

CORPORATES
COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, THAI UNION FROZEN PRODUCTS PUBLIC COMPANY LIMITED, INDEPENDENT GROCERS OF AUSTRALIA, METCASH LIMITED – ASX MTS, GREENPEACE INTERNATIONAL, ASSOCIATED PRESS, THAILAND. DEPT OF FISHERIES, INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION

Harris Scarfe tips growth through Debenhams deal

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 14-Dec-15

Australian department store group Harris Scarfe has secured an alliance with UK-based Debenhams. Harris Scarfe expects its sales to be boosted by about $A100m by the deal to open about 10 stand-alone Debenhams stores in Australia via a franchise agreement. Harris Scarfe also expects revenue to be bolstered by a deal to sell a range of Debenhams’ brands in its stores. The group also intends to open up to 15 new stores in coming years.

CORPORATES
HARRIS SCARFE HOLDINGS LIMITED, DEBENHAMS RETAIL PLC, PEPKOR SOUTH EAST ASIA PTY LTD, BEST AND LESS PTY LTD, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, THE GAP INCORPORATED, TOP SHOP, J SAINSBURY PLC, HABITAT, MOMENTUM CORPORATE SOLUTIONS PTY LTD, POSTIE PLUS GROUP LIMITED, STEINHOFF INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LIMITED, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES

Woolies sued over payments

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Original article by Sue Mitchell, Sarah Danckert
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 11-Dec-15

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has commenced legal proceedings against Woolworths, accusing the retailer of unconscionable conduct. The ACCC alleges that Woolworths contravened Australian consumer law when it demanded more than $A60 million in extra payments from suppliers in late 2014. The matter will be heard in the Federal Court.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, COLES GROUP LIMITED

Coles MD says suppliers living on Treasure Island

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 17 : 9-Dec-15

Coles MD John Durkan has criticised global suppliers of brand-name groceries for charging excessive prices in Australia, a concern he first raised in 2008. He concedes that consumers must be expected to pay a reasonable price for groceries, but he says cost increases in Australia should not be higher than in other countries. Durkan adds that more consumers will switch to supermarkets’ private-label products if the cost of branded groceries keeps rising.

CORPORATES
COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COLES GROUP LIMITED, ARNOTT’S BISCUITS LIMITED, COCA-COLA AMATIL LIMITED – ASX CCL, SCHWEPPES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, AUSTRALIAN FOOD AND GROCERY COUNCIL, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

No shock at plunge: Dick Smith

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Original article by Patrick Hatch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 8-Dec-15

Shares in Dick Smith Holdings (DSH) closed at $A0.36 on 7 December 2015, after reaching a low of $A0.20 in the previous week. The household electronics retailer’s stock was issued at $A2.20 in a $A520m IPO in 2013. Businessman Dick Smith says investors should not be surprised by the slump, noting that Woolworths has sold DSH for just $A94m only one year before the float. However, Smith is confident that the fortunes of the company he founded in 1968 can be revived.

CORPORATES
DICK SMITH HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX DSH, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, ANCHORAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, APPLE INCORPORATED, SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS COMPANY LIMITED

7-Eleven affair a signal to franchisors

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Original article by Adele Ferguson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 40 : 7-Dec-15

A revised franchise agreement that has been proposed by 7-Eleven Australia indemnifies head office for any future liability for underpaid staff. However, the convenience store chain has agreed to pay the first $A25m of any claims for unpaid wages that are received by the independent wage review panel that was set up in response to the wage exploitation scandal. Franchisees will be required to pay the next $A5m worth of claims, but head office will equally share any liability for claims beyond this sum. This has significant implications for other franchisees, amid claims that the wage scandal is not limited to 7-Eleven.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, BAKER’S DELIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED, UNITED PETROLEUM PTY LTD, SUBWAY SANDWICHES PTY LTD, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, EAGLE BOYS PIZZA, NANDO’S AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, 7-ELEVEN FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION, LEVITT ROBINSON

The state of Australia’s $37.8b online shopping landscape

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Dec-15

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that Australians spent an estimated $A37.8 billion online in the year to June 2015. About 4 in 10 Australians buy at least one product online during an average four-week period. The new State of the Nation Retail Spotlight report shows that 6.5 per cent of Australians aged 14+ now buy tickets to shows, movies or events online in an average four weeks. This is followed by travel (6.4 per cent), women’s clothing (5.6 per cent), books (5.2 per cent) and music downloads (4.8 per cent). Roy Morgan Research CEO Michele Levine says it is important that traditional retailers stop viewing online as a threat, and instead as an opportunity to reach and appeal to customers in different ways.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED

The power of Tim Tams: Arnott’s puts bite on Coles in price war

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 2 : 1-Dec-15

Coles will no longer stock certain Arnott’s products following a pricing dispute with the biscuit maker. Arnott’s had sought price rises ranging from 2.2 per cent to 9.9 per cent on more than 40 of its popular biscuit products, and the supermarket chain’s resistance prompted a ban on deliveries of Arnott’s products to its stores. Coles eventually backed down, although it has refused to accept price increases on some products and will cease selling them.

CORPORATES
COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ARNOTT’S BISCUITS LIMITED, CAMPBELL SOUP COMPANY, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, FOSTER’S GROUP LIMITED