RETAIL TRADE – AUSTRALIA

Parties and pumpkins take centre stage for Halloween

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 30-Oct-23

Once considered a children’s event, Halloween is evolving into a beloved Aussie tradition for adults. Research from the Australian Retailers Association in partnership with Roy Morgan shows that 1.3 million Australians will hold or attend Halloween parties without children in 2023. The data underscores Halloween’s multifaceted appeal as both a family-focused occasion and an event for adults. The age group most likely to host or attend Halloween parties are those aged 18-35, with 16% planning to do so. It comes as popularity for Halloween products continues to surge, seeing sales upticks of 25 per cent each year over the past five years – crowning Halloween as the fastest-growing event on the retail calendar. Home decorations remain the most popular Halloween-specific purchase, growing 14 per cent year on year, while supermarkets are set to sell more than one million kilograms of pumpkins for the Halloween rush. Australians are forecast to spend $490m on Halloween in 2023, which is 14 per cent higher than in 2022.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION

A staggering number of people believe they can justify shoplifting

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Original article by Ash Cant
The New Daily – Page: Online : 27-Sep-23

Research from Monash University shows that many Australians believe that shoplifting is acceptable due to the cost-of-living crisis. Some 28 per cent of respondents are of the view that it is fine to take an item from a store without paying for it. However, 93 per cent of consumers aged 55+ said that shoplifting is not at all justifiable, compared with just 47 per cent of those aged 18-34. Meanwhile, 30 per cent of respondents believe it is fine to change the price tags on products. Major supermarket chains have ramped up their anti-theft measures in response to a spike in shoplifting.

CORPORATES
MONASH UNIVERSITY

Halloween hits sweet spot with Aussies – $490 million boost predicted

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Original article by
Australian Retailers Association – Page: Online : 26-Sep-23

Research from the Australian Retailers Association in collaboration with Roy Morgan shows that more than 5.3 million Australians will celebrate Halloween in 2023, an increase of 300,000 year-on-year. Those celebrating Halloween plan to do so in a variety of ways, such as attending or hosting a Halloween-themed party, decorating their homes, getting dressed up and going out, or staying home and welcoming trick or treaters. Total spending on Halloween is forecast to reach $490m, up 14 per cent on 2022; average spending per person is forecast to rise 8.1% to $93. ARA CEO Paul Zahra says the increased spend this year in the face of cost-of-living pressures demonstrates the growing popularity of Halloween in Australia, particularly for adults.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Uniqlo says sorry after uncovering $25 million in underpayments

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Original article by Emma Koehn
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 26-Jul-23

Uniqlo Australia is the latest company to admit that its employees have been underpaid. The Japan-based casual wear retailer has advised that about 7,900 employees had been underpaid $25m in total between 1 July 2015 and 30 June 2022. The underpayment occured due to errors in calculating affected employees’ entitlements, and were identified after a specialist firm undertook a review of Uniqlo’s systems. The company opened its first Australian store in 2014, and it now has more than 30 stores nationwide.

CORPORATES
UNIQLO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Aussies spending $600m less online than a year ago

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Original article by David Swan
The Australian – Page: 15 : 12-Jul-23

Data from Airwallex shows that factors such as cost-of-living pressures and interest rates rises are prompting Australian consumers to shop online less frequently. The company estimates that online spending fell by 1.82 per cent nationwide in the year to June; this equates to a downturn of $523.3m, or $587 per adult. Amelia Hamer of Airwallex says Australians are holding back on their discretionary spending across the digital economy; however, she notes that "bright spots" include the technology, education and travel sectors

CORPORATES
AIRWALLEX PTY LTD

Aussies tipped to spend $9.3 billion on mid-year/EOFY sales

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 6-Jun-23

Research from the Australian Retailers Association in collaboration with Roy Morgan shows that shoppers are tipped to spend $9.3bn on mid-year and End of Financial Year sales in 2023. This is $500m higher than in 2022, although the number of Australians who are planning to shop during these sales is expected to fall to 5.8 million, which is 400,000 lower than previously. Those who plan to shop in the mid-year/EOFY sales will each spend an average of $1,616; this is up almost $200 per person from 2022. The 50-64 age demographic are set to be the biggest shoppers, encompassing 37.6% or $3.5 billion of the overall $9.3 billion spend. Meanwhile, 51 per cent of Australians will shop online during the mid-year/EOFY sales. The ARA-Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey was conducted from May 19-24 with an Australian-wide cross-section of 3,187 Australians aged 18+.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION

Bunnings eyes chunk of $10b pet sales

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 28-Feb-23

Perth-based conglomerate Wesfarmers has advised that its Bunnings chain will expand its product offering to include a broader pet-care range. Bunnings already sells pet-care products such as kennels, mats and bedding; its new in-store specialty department will be launched in March and feature an expanded range of products such as pet food and toys. Bunnings is hoping to increase its share of the $10bn specialty pet sector. Bunnings posted revenue of $9.8bn for the first half of 2022-23, an increase of 6.3 per cent.

CORPORATES
WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED

Coles warns on price rises as shoppers grab home brands

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 22-Feb-23

Coles Group has advised that CEO Steven Cain will step down on 1 May after five years in the role. He will be succeeded by Leah Weckert, who will be the first woman to run a major supermarket chain in Australia. Coles has posted a 2022-23 interim net profit from continuing operations of $616m, which is 11.4 per cent higher than previously; revenue rose four per cent to $20.59bn. The company has indicated that price inflation rose to 7.7 per cent across its product range in the December quarter, up from 7.1 per cent in the September quarter. However, Cain expects inflation to moderate in the second half of the financial year. Weckert notes that many consumers are switching to home-brand grocery products amid the cost-of-living pressures.

CORPORATES
COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL

Pre-Christmas retail sales hit record high of $66.8 billion – within 1.2% of Roy Morgan’s forecast

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Feb-23

Roy Morgan’s 2022 Christmas retail sales forecast conducted in conjunction with the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) of $66 billion seasonally adjusted for the key pre-Christmas retailing period was within 1.2% of the actual record seasonally adjusted retail sales result of $66.8 billion – the most accurate forecast since the COVID-19 pandemic struck Australia early in 2020. Even more impressive were Roy Morgan’s retail sales forecasts covering ‘Non-Food’ categories, which cover about 60% of total retail spending. Roy Morgan had predicted that total spending in ‘Non-Food’ categories would amount to $40.6 billion (up 7.8% on a year ago); the final spending across these categories came in at $40.6 billion, an exact match and also in line with the ABS December quarter CPI figures. Forecast spending in the Food category was $25.4 billion, slightly lower than the actual result of $26.2 billion. The difference in this category was heavily impacted by significant flooding events in much of eastern Australia, which led to unexpected inflationary pressures across several key food and grocery items.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Retail slump won’t stop RBA rate rise

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Original article by Ronald Mizen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 1-Feb-23

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that retail sales fell by 3.9 per cent in December. This followed 11 consecutive months of growth. Monthly sales fell by $1.4bn to $34.4bn in seasonally adjusted terms in December. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the downturn in retail sales reflects the impact of rising interest rates on household budgets. However, some economists have downplayed the significance of the latest retail data, arguing that the Black Friday sales in late November affected the seasonally-adjusted figures. The Reserve Bank is still widely tipped to increase the cash rate by 25 basis points in February.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA