RETAIL TRADE – AUSTRALIA

Supermarket break-up powers called for

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Original article by Tom McIlroy, Ronald Mizen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 19-Mar-24

The Greens want the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission to be given powers to apply for a court order to break up companies that abuse their market power. Greens senator Nick McKim says supermarkets are the focus of the proposed divestiture laws, although he emphasises that the ACCC could also use these powers to target companies in other sectors. Meanwhile, the Australian Retail Association has rejected claims that grocery giants Coles and Woolworths are price-gouging, contending that the duopoly’s sales and costs have increased much faster than their profits over the last five years.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW

China’s Shein set to smash $1b sales in challenge to locals

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Original article by Nick Bonyhady, Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 13-Mar-24

Jarden’s head of research Ben Gilbert says Wesfarmers will need to invest in its Kmart and Target brands in order to compete with new online rivals such as Shein and Temu. Gilbert forecasts that Temu, Shein and Amazon will achieve combined sales of more than $7bn in 2024. Meanwhile, corporate filings show that Shein’s Australian arm posted a gross profit of $26m in 2023, while revenue totalled $812m; Roy Morgan estimates that Shein is on track to post annual sales of $1bn. Shein was founded in China but is now based in Singapore, while it is planning a US sharemarket listing.

CORPORATES
SHEIN, TEMU, JARDEN AND COMPANY, ROY MORGAN LIMITED, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Sweet spending spree on Easter treats as Australia’s population swells

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Mar-24

Despite cost-of-living pressures, Australian families will splash out on Easter treats this year, tipped to spend $2.05 billion on hot cross buns, easter eggs or other special food (up 23.5%); this is approximately $400 million more than in 2023. Research from the Australian Retailers Association (ARA), in collaboration with Roy Morgan, shows that 17.3 million Australians plan on buying Easter food and chocolate, up 1 million on a year ago. Despite the increased spend overall, most Australians plan on spending broadly the same amount as last year (63%), with almost a third planning to spend less (29%) and just 8% planning to spend more. Cementing Easter as a family occasion, the 18-34 age bracket will spend the most on treats at $800 million across the country, for an average spend of $136 per head. They are trailed by the 35-49 demographic, who will spend $560 million, or $122 per head. The ARA-Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey was conducted with an Australian-wide cross-section of 2,350 Australians aged 18+ from 23-28 February.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION

Roy Morgan Retail Sales outlook for 2024

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Original article by By Roy Morgan’s Retail & Consumer Trends Expert Laura Demasi
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 6-Mar-24

Despite the intense cost-of-living pressures on households over 2023 the much-feared consumer spending ‘cliff’ did not come to pass, with retail sales steadied by record population growth, continued strong employment, and the dwindling remains of record household savings. With 2024 set to be another uncertain year, Roy Morgan unveils its retail sales forecast and steps through some of the factors that will shape how the year might unfold. Roy Morgan’s preliminary retail forecast for 2024 sees the year ending with retail sales still about 8.4% higher than the pre-pandemic trend; based on retail sales growing at the normal rate of 3.4% each year, which is the annual average growth rate from 2010-2023, excluding the much higher pandemic years (2020-22).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Australians share the Valentine’s Day love today

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Original article by
Australian Retailers Association – Page: Online : 14-Feb-24

Research from the Australian Retailers Association, in conjunction with Roy Morgan, shows that 3.4 million Australians will spend an average of $135 per head on Valentine’s Day gifts in 2024, up from $118 in 2023. In total, Australians are predicted to spend $465 million on traditional gifts for loved ones, as well as gifts for themselves. ARA CEO Paul Zahra has highlighted the importance of inclusivity in the traditional Valentine’s gifting experience this year, noting the opportunity for all individuals to use the day as a time of self-appreciation. Amongst the top gifts of choice for survey respondents this year are flowers, chocolates and hospitality outings.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Dutton must explain Woolies boycott: PM

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 3 : 16-Jan-24

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Opposition leader Peter Dutton needs to clarify his stance on Woolworths after the retail giant advised that it will not stock Australia Day-themed merchandise. Albanese says Dutton should specify whether his call to boycott Woolworths is only meant to apply until after the national holiday or should be ongoing. Albanese adds that the boycott would presumably also apply to Kmart and Aldi, and notes that the three retailers collectively employ about 200,000 people, so Dutton should explain the impact of his proposed boycott on their jobs.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD

Supermarkets warned on pricing

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Original article by Ronald Mizen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 16-Jan-24

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb says it could potentially take legal action against a major supermarket chain in the next 12 months for breaching consumer law. Although the ACCC does not have price monitoring powers when it comes to supermarkets, it does have a role in investigating misleading and deceptive conduct. Cass-Gottlieb noted that the ACCC is concerned about the issue of ‘was, now pricing’, whereby chains offer a discount on an item, but may have engaged in deceptive behaviour by increasing the price of the item for a short time beforehand.

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The Iconic promises to issue refunds to hacked customers

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Original article by David Swan, Jessica Yun
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 10-Jan-24

The Iconic is the latest Australian company to be hit by a growing wave of cybercrime. The online retailer has advised customers to regularly change their passwords following a rise in fraudulent account login attempts. Some customers claim to have had more than $1,000 stolen from their bank accounts after The Iconic was targeted by hackers who used personal information gleaned from separate data breaches to access customers’ accounts. The Iconic says it will provide full refunds to all affected customers, and emphasised that its own website has not been compromised.

CORPORATES
THEICONIC.COM.AU

Black Friday sales hit record high

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 29-Nov-23

The Australian Retailers Association recently forecast that consumers will spend $6.36bn across the Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend. Data showing that retail sales fell by a seasonally 0.2 per cent in October suggests that many consumers had delayed their spending in order to take advantage of the increasingly popular four-day sales event. Retailers are also believed to have offered larger Black Friday/Cyber Monday discounts of up to 30 per cent, compared with about 26 per cent in 2022. Meanwhile, the National Retail Association’s director Rob Godwin says Christmas sales will be a "make-or-break" period for many retailers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL RETAIL ASSOCIATION LIMITED

Fake website scams: Grim warning to Black Friday shoppers

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Original article by Chloe Whelan
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 21-Nov-23

Australian shoppers are expected to spend $6.36bn in the Black Friday sales, making it the biggest shopping event on the nation’s retail calendar. However, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s deputy chair Catriona Lowe has warned shoppers to be aware of fake websites that replicate the genuine sites of well-known brands. The products sold on these sites are often fake or simply never arrive. Lowe adds that scammers are now paying for their fake websites to appear at the top of internet search results, so consumers may not be able to trust the first listing they see. Data from the National Anti-Scam Centre shows that there have been 2,760 reports of fake online stores so far in 2023.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NATIONAL ANTI-SCAM CENTRE