RETAIL TRADE – AUSTRALIA

Myer buys big brands from Lew’s Premier

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 30-Oct-24

Premier Investments will hold a 51.5 per cent stake in Myer Holdings if a deal to sell its Apparel Brands division to the department store group is approved by shareholders. Premier’s chairman Solomon Lew will personally control about 27 per cent of Myer and become a director of the iconic retailer. The deal includes brands such as Just Jeans, Jay Jays, Dotti and Portmans; Premier will then focus on its Smiggle and Peter Alexander brands. Myer’s executive chair Olivia Worth says the deal will allow the Myer One customer loyalty program to target a younger demographic.

CORPORATES
PREMIER INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX PMV, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, APPAREL BRANDS, JUST JEANS PTY LTD, JAY JAY’S JEANS WAREHOUSE PTY LTD, DOTTI, PORTMANS PTY LTD, SMIGGLE PTY LTD, PETER ALEXANDER SLEEPWEAR PTY LTD

Aldi the most trust supermarket as Coles, Woolies fend off fake discount claims

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Original article by Danielle Long
The Australian – Page: 17 : 11-Oct-24

Research from Roy Morgan shows that Aldi is Australia’s most trusted supermarket brand in 2024, having risen from third place in 2023. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says Aldi’s rise in the firm’s Trusted Brand Awards reflects factors such as the increased distrust of grocery giants Woolworths and Coles in the wake of recent scandals such as allegations of price gouging; Levine adds that consumers have responded positively to Aldi’s competitive pricing and commitment to quality. Woolworths and Coles are now the fourth and fifth most distrusted brands, according to Roy Morgan.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL

Albanese targets grocery shrinkflation in battle to curb cost-of-living poll risk

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 3-Oct-24

The federal government has indicated that it will review the Unit Pricing Code of Conduct, and potentially expand its coverage to include more retailers. The government has been targeting supermarket pricing ahead of the federal election, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says that addressing the problem of ‘shrinkflation’ is part of its strategy to "get a better deal" for consumers. It is a common practice for manufacturers of packaged food and groceries to downsize their products while leaving the prices unchanged or even increasing them.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Bunnings boss rejects gouging claim

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Original article by James Thomson, Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 17-Sep-24

National Party senator Ross Cadell has reiterated his view that the pricing policies of so-called ‘big-box’ retailers such as Bunnings should be scrutinised by a parliamentary inquiry. However, Bunnings MD Mike Schneider has responded to suggestions that the hardware giant may have engaged in price gouging and abused its market power. He notes the company’s long-running ‘lowest prices are just the beginning’ advertising slogan, arguing that Bunnings puts a lot of work and capital into ensuring that it lives up to this claim.

CORPORATES
BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Coles outdoes Woolworths on several fronts

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 3-Sep-24

The latest financial results from grocery giants Coles and Woolworths show that the former is outperforming its larger rival on several key metrics. Coles is recording faster growth in sales, due to factors such as store promotions, the perception among consumers that it is a cheaper brand, and the ease of redeeming loyalty points. Coles is also narrowing the gap with Woolworths regarding gross margins, after focusing on stock losses and managing costs. Meanwhile, the share price of Coles has risen by nearly 20 per cent over the last 12 months, while Woolworths has shed 5.4 per cent.

CORPORATES
COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW

Temu & Shein’s Australian customer base keeps growing -as more Australians continue to trade down in the first half of 2024 in response to the cost-of-living crisis

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 7-Aug-24

New data from Roy Morgan capturing the annual shopper base of these ultra cheap online disruptors shows that 3.8 million Australians aged 14+ have shopped at Temu at least once in the last 12 months, while 2 million have bought from Shein at least once. The research also shows that 80% of Temu shoppers and 76% of Shein shoppers are repeat customers; many are also high frequency buyers, with 48% of Temu shoppers having bought from it four or more times over the last 12 months, compared with 42% of Shein shoppers. Meanwhile, Roy Morgan estimates that Temu and Shein together had close to $3 billion in annual sales in the 12 months to June 2024 – $1.7bn for Temu and $1.1bn for Shein.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, TEMU, SHEIN

Amazon Australian adds 1.1 million new customers to its customer base; now 7.9 million Australians shop on Amazon ramping up its status as a threat to all Australian retailers

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 30-Jul-24

As many retail brands struggle to maintain sales and acquire new customers amid the cost-of-living crisis, Amazon continues to buck the trend by growing its annual customer base by 1.1 million people in the 12 months to June 2024. Research from Roy Morgan shows that 7.9 million Australians aged 14+ now shop on Amazon at least once a year, up from 6.8 million in the year to June 2023. David Jones (-5%) and Target (-7%) have lost the most customers over the last 12 months compared to the previous year, while Big W and Myer are in neutral territory. JB HiFi is the only other retailer to have gained customers, with an increase of 300,000 in the current year. A large proportion of Amazon shoppers are high-frequency customers, with 3 in 10 making a purchase seven or more times over a 12-month period. A mix of all Australians are shopping on Amazon; however, an even split between men (50%) and women (50%) sets Amazon apart from most of its peers which tend to skew towards women. More than half of Amazon’s shoppers are aged 25-39, and its shoppers are more likely than the average Australian to come from higher income households (3 in 10 shoppers live in $200,000+ income households).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Dutton’s retail break-up plan ‘madness’: Kennett

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 3-Jul-24

The Coalition proposes to introduce legislation that would force companies in certain sectors to divest assets if they are found to have abused their market power. The divestiture powers would specifically target grocery and hardware retailers with annual turnover of more than $5bn, which would include Coles, Woolworths and Bunnings. The proposed laws have been criticised by former Victorian Liberal premier Jeff Kennett and Business Council of Australia CEO Bran Black. The introduction of divestiture powers was also rejected by former Labor MP Craig Emerson in his recent review of the food and grocery code of conduct.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Myer outlines expansion plan with Just Jeans, Jay Jays buy

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Original article by Kylar Loussikian
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 25-Jun-24

Premier Investments’ chairman Solomon Lew would become the biggest shareholder in Myer Holdings if a proposed deal to acquire the former’s Apparel Brands division proceeds. Myer has approached Premier Investments with the all-scrip deal, which would result in the department store group acquiring brands such as Just Jeans, Jay Jays and Portmans. Premier would in turn distribute the Myer shares to its stockholders. Myer’s executive chair Olivia Wirth says it is looking at both organic and inorganic investment opportunities.

CORPORATES
MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, PREMIER INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX PMV, APPAREL BRANDS, JUST JEANS PTY LTD, JAY JAY’S JEANS WAREHOUSE PTY LTD, PORTMANS PTY LTD

Bargain-savvy shoppers to splash $10 billion on EOFY sales

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 5-Jun-24

Australian shoppers are tipped to spend $10.1 billion on mid-year/end of financial year sales in 2024, which is up $800 million (8.6%) from 2023, as retailers showcase their mid-year and tax-time promotions in a bid to entice cash-strapped shoppers. The research by the Australian Retailers Association in collaboration with Roy Morgan shows that 27% quarter of Australians (6.2 million people) will participate in the sales, which is 1% higher than last year. They will each spend an average of $1,638 (up $22 per person from 2023); 35% plan on spending more than last year, 43% plan on spending the same and 22% plan on spending less. The ARA-Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey was conducted with an Australian-wide cross-section of 3,301 Australians aged 18+ on 17- 23 May.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, ROY MORGAN LIMITED