MEDIA RELEASE May 2013 Your favourite Outlet Centre, Birkenhead Point, home to over 120 fabulous brands on sale every day is set to continue its multi-million dollar redevelopment with significant improvement to the overall shopping experience by creating easier access throughout the centre, more retail space and maximising the waterfrontage. This exciting phase of works includes: Expanding and modernising [...]

MYER chief executive Bernie Brookes is still hesitant to declare an end to the retail downturn, despite continued sales growth in the third quarter of the financial year. Myer today reported sales of $652.5 million for the three months to the end of April, up 0.5 per cent from the same period a year earlier, or [...]

Myer has reported $652.5 million in sales for the three months to April 27, a 0.5 per cent increase from the previous corresponding year, as it remained cautious about the retail outlook. The department store chain said comparable store sales rose 0.4 per cent from last year, the fourth consecutive quarter of positive [...]

The pressure on specialty retailers from the internet, higher savings by households and a basic loss of interest in what they have for sale, has forced landlords to cut rents in a bid to keep vacancy rates low at shopping centres. While [...]

Once ignored in favour of glitzy offshore websites with their steep discounts, Australia’s traditional bricks-and-mortar retailers are staging a fightback for the hearts, minds and wallets of local consumers to win a greater slice of online sales. Although late to the party in terms of setting up credible and properly supported websites, the nation’s [...]

Two hatted chefs gone, one left. That’s the depressing form guide at Westfield Sydney, where twin-toqued Italian chef Alessandro Pavoni has joined Justin North as another casualty at the shiny central business district shopping centre. Pavoni opened Spiedo in 2010 at the then freshly redeveloped [...]

Why the RBA will cut rates – Why the RBA won’t cut Job ads continue to slide, says ANZ Retail sales slip after solid start to 2013 Economists and financial markets have looked through the raft of fresh economic data released today and say tomorrow’s decision on [...]

Wesfarmers-owned Coles has raised $532 million through the sale of majority ownership of 19 shopping centres into a joint venture with the country’s biggest super fund, ISPT. It will deliver Coles net proceeds of $400 million, as the retailer will retain a 25 per cent stake in the [...]

US discount supermarket Costco has blitzed the traditional Australian retailers with a price of $649.99 for a bottle of the ‘perfect’ 2008 Grange, the lowest price for a bricks and mortar chain in Australia. With the eagerly anticipated global release of the latest Penfolds Grange looming, national liquor chain Dan Murphy’s set the early running with [...]

Myer has warned the proposed increase to the Medicare levy will hurt sales at its stores, since it will affect its direct customer base. The federal government has confirmed plans to increase the Medicare levy by half a percentage point, which will cost the average household at least $350 a year. [...]

Developers of the fully approved and long awaited Marian Town Centre, located 25 kilometres west of the Mackay CBD, are finalising a building contract with Mainbrace Constructions and say they are on track to start construction in late May. It is estimated that the shopping centre will by completed by May next year. The developers have [...]

Australians are starting to spend big again, with the sales of fridges and washing machines returning to healthy levels, and the news could not be better for Australia’s liquor industry. It’s called the Harvey Norman test. When [...]

De Bortoli wines, one of Australia’s largest family-owned wine groups, has slumped to a $24.7 million full-year loss after export sales were crunched by the strengthening dollar and the value of its equities investment portfolio sank by nearly $50 million. Previously, De Bortoli’s sharemarket plays [...]

Wesfarmers boss Richard Goyder believes Target retail chain should remain as a stand alone division within the Perth-based conglomerate, brushing aside suggestions the struggling business should merge with Kmart. Target lost its second managing director in 15 months this morning. ‘‘It needs to be stand alone and we think there is a lot of shareholder value [...]

In 25 years, the company has lost most of its street cred and its value has shrunk from billions to whatever is on offer, writes Elizabeth Knight.

Lend Lease Kylie Rampa has joined Lend Lease as Managing Director of the company’s investment management business in Australia. Kylie will have overall responsibility for the managed funds in Australia as well as overseeing the Australian retail asset management business. Kylie joins Lend Lease from Gandel Group which holds substantial investments in the retail property sector. [...]

Outgoings and promotion contributions payable by retail tenants Operating Costs are increasing higher than the rate of inflation. The next few years will see more tenants challenging landlords’ claims for reimbursement of variable outgoings and promotion fund contributions. This article looks at the issues, the law as well as a couple of recent cases that have [...]

CEO Outlook There’s a lot of optimism for the year ahead. The word ‘challenging’ appears many times in the CEO Outlooks but so does the word ‘optimistic’. There’s never an, ‘across the board’, common theme with this feature; different CEOs see different issues as being important. However, although there’s no common ‘theme’, there are common observations. [...]