Myer
Encyclopedia
Myer is Australia
's largest department store
chain, retailing a broad range of merchandise including women's, men's and children's clothing, footwear and accessories; cosmetics and fragrance; homewares; electrical; furniture and bedding; toys; books and stationery; food and confectionery; and travel goods.
, who migrated from Russia
to Melbourne
in 1899 with very little money and little knowledge of English
to join his elder brother, Elcon Myer (1875-1938), who had left Russia two years earlier. They opened the first Myer store in Bendigo, Victoria
in 1900. After prospering, the second store opened in 1908.
In 1911 Myer purchased the business of Wright and Neil, Drapers
, in Bourke Street, Melbourne
, near the General Post Office
, and a new building was completed and opened in 1914. From this base in Melbourne
, Myer built Australia's largest chain of department stores, and the only chain with stores in all Australian states.
In 1918, the Doveton woollen mills at Ballarat were purchased, and in 1921 a new building fronting Post Office Place was added at Melbourne and in the following years Myer purchased adjoining properties, eventually building a store known as the Myer Emporium. Myer expanded to Lonsdale Street
in the 1920s.
The Myer Emporium grew with the purchase of the old established businesses of Robertson & Moffat and Stephens & Sons. In 1925, Myer Emporium Ltd was listed on the Melbourne Stock Exchange and the new building on the Lonsdale Street
frontage was begun. In Adelaide, in 1925, the company Myer SA Stores Ltd acquired a controlling interest in Marshall's department store and its shares continued to be listed on the Adelaide Stock Exchange until Myer Emporium Ltd made a successful takeover bid in 1966. A separate building in Queensberry Street, Melbourne, was put up in 1928, and the Collins Street
businesses of T. Webb and Sons, china importers, and W. H. Rocke and Company, house furnishers, were bought and transferred to the Bourke-street building. By 1934, the public company had a paid-up capital of nearly £2,500,000. The company was then employing 5300 people with medical and nursing aid for the staff, and rest homes for them at the seaside and in the Dandenong Ranges
.
On the death of Sidney Myer in 1934, leadership of the company fell to Elcon Myer, and on the death of Elcon in 1938, leadership went to their nephew Norman Myer. Norman Myer led the company until his death in 1956.
Myer grew by developing its own stores (becoming one of Australia's major property owners and developers in the process) and acquiring other department stores, including Adelaide's Marshall's, Western Australia's Boans
in 1984, Queensland's Barry and Roberts and in New South Wales they acquired Farmers & Co in 1961 and Grace Brothers in 1983.
following the purchase of name and logo from US Target Corporation
and positioning it as a discount department store chain.
In 1983, Grace Bros.
bought Myer NSW, and then in July of that year Myer acquired Grace Bros. Holdings Ltd. The Myer store on Market and Pitt Sts in Sydney became the main Grace Bros. store.
In 1984, Myer acquired Boans Ltd, the dominant Western Australian department store chain and embarked on a major redevelopment of its Perth City Store.
In 1985 the Myer Emporium (and Target, its discount department store) merged with GJ Coles & Coy forming Coles Myer Limited, then Australia's largest retailer. Myer remained a distinct entity within the new corporate structure until it was sold in 2006.
At the post-Christmas sales in 1992, the glass doors to the Grace Bros Sydney City store were shattered by a stampede of shoppers.
In 2000, Coles Myer CEO Dennis Eck, faced with lower sales and profits from Myer and Grace Bros. stores took the department stores down market, reducing service levels, increasing stock volumes on the selling floor and introducing product to appeal to younger consumers. In doing so, he ended up replicating the approach of another of Coles Myer's chains, Target. The resulting effect included reduced customer visits and reduced units sold per transaction. In 2001, Coles Myer set about to reposition the store to appeal to customers lost in the down market experiment.
In 2003, one of the key changes made by the recently appointed Managing Director, Dawn Robertson, was to classify each Myer Grace Bros. store using a grid system referencing the socio-economic status of the area, its turnover and growth potential. Larger city-centre stores would rank at the top of the grid and smaller regional stores would rank at the bottom of the grid. The grid would affect the merchandise allocated to each store, rather than selling the same range of product in downtown Melbourne as in regional Queensland.
On 13 February 2004, Grace Bros. stores were rebranded as Myer.
In April 2004, Myer re-opened its Bondi Junction, New South Wales
, store which replaced a former Grace Bros. store closed in April 2002 to make way for the redevelopment of Westfield Bondi Junction. It was the first Myer store to open in several years and incorporated new features such as white glossy floor tiles, extensive use of glass, and greater use of mannequins.
Under managing director Dawn Robertson, Myer began to target the Sydney market more strongly, to challenge the position of chief rival David Jones
particularly in ladies fashion. In February 2004, Myer held its Sydney fashion parade the day before David Jones. On 9 August 2004, Myer staged a fashion parade open-air in Martin Place, gaining widespread attention, and again was held the day before David Jones
' show.
On 13 March 2006, Coles Myer announced it would sell Myer to a consortium controlled by US private equity group Newbridge Capital, part of the Texas Pacific group. The consortium also included the Myer family, who held a 5% stake. The new owners, who also secured the freehold on the flagship Bourke Street store, indicated that they would not radically change the business, at least in the short term, and had no plans to redevelop the Bourke Street site as this would impact too heavily on profitability during the construction period. Texas Pacific also have interests in UK department store Debenhams
and high-end US retailer Neiman Marcus
. This sale was completed for $A1.4 bn on 2 June 2006.
), new owners Newbridge Capital and the Myer family appointed chairman Bill Wavish and chief executive Bernie Brookes, both formerly of Woolworths
.
Beginning July 2006, Myer held a "History Making Clearance" to clear out excess stock deemed either unprofitable or unpopular, and reduced inventories from $1.5 billion to $750 million, and all store-specific warehouses were closed.
Former Miss Universe
Jennifer Hawkins
began appearing in campaigns for Myer in 2006 and in January 2007 signed a $4 million deal to be the "face" of Myer for four years.
Myer withdrew from the Coles Group part-owned FlyBuys rewards program on 1 February 2007.
In March 2007, Myer announced first half earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of $123 million, an increase of 84% on the previous year. This represents a profit margin of 6.8%, compared with 3.9% in the previous corresponding period. According to chairman Bill Wavish, all Myer stores were now profitable, and all stores were more profitable than in the previous year. Myer acquired four Harris Scarfe
stores (including regaining a store it divested to Harris Scarfe in 1998) and took a minority shareholding in Harris Scarfe.
The Mymerch system, developed with IBM
and Oracle, cost $99 million and was implemented early April 2007. Among other functions, Mymerch will beef up Myer's ability to carry out statistical analysis of customer habits giving it greater capacity to forecast sales trends and target promotions.
Myer's profit turnaround was tempered in April 2007 by the loss of key staff. Bob Boutin, apparel director, Mark Bingemann, women's wear business manager and Jasmine Bingemann, footwear
and accessories
manager all resigned within a short period. This followed reports of management dissatisfaction over the direction of the fashion
business signified by the defection of designers such as Alex Perry
and Tigerlilly to David Jones
.
In June 2007, a consortium comprising the Myer family, Colonial First State
and GIC Real Estate (Singapore) announced it would be purchasing Myer's Melbourne CBD store. The Bourke Street part of the store was planned to be redeveloped by 2009, with Myer taking a 60-year lease, but the development was not completed until March 2011. The Lonsdale Street part of the store closed in 2009.
In September 2009, following rumours the previous month, Myer indicated it would float the business at an indicative share price range of $3.90 to $4.90 when it listed on 2 November, giving it a market capitalisation between $2.3 billion and $2.8 billion. The final issue price was $4.10, but by August 2011 the stock had slumped to as low as $2.09.
It initially credited 1 point per $1 spent up to $2500 per annum; 1.5 points per $1 spent from $2500 to $5000 per annum; and 2 points per $1 spent for $5000+ per annum. Each 1,250 points accrued would earn the customer a $25 gift card, provided $1,500 was spent each year. With the relaunch of the Myer store card in November 2006, this changed to awards 2 points per $1 spent, regardless of annual spend, with 2,000 points required to receive a $20 gift card. Members who pay with a Myer store card receive an additional point per dollar spent. Customers also earn 1 point for every $1 spent outside of Myer when using the Myer Visa card. MYER one members are sent a quarterly update, in addition to special member offers, including discounts, a free copy of the "Myer Emporium" magazine, product samples and "gift with purchase" offers.
Myer revamped its MYER one program by introducing a graduated rewards system with three levels including MYER one, MYER one Silver and MYER one Gold. Each reward level is dependent on customer spend and confers exclusive benefits. In September 2010, Myer stated there were 3.7 million members and five million cards in circulation. Of these, over 20,000 had Gold status, spending over $7,500 per annum. Sales attributed to members accounted for 68% of total Myer sales. Gift cards valued at $51 million had been provided to members as rewards in the previous year.
, also managed by GE Money.
Following its sale, Myer relaunched the Myer card in October 2006 in conjunction with GE Money. According to GE Money, 125,000 accounts had been opened by August 2007.
In November 2007, Myer launched a Visa credit card, also in conjunction with GE Money. Myer stated it was prepared to wear losses from the card for two years and that its objective was to drive increased loyalty from the card (which links with the Myer One card) rather than being profitable in its own right. It expected to sign 100,000 customers to the Visa card by November 2008. Myer reported it had signed 15,000 customers to its Visa card in the first five weeks from launch, half of whom were converts from the existing store card.
In 2007, the Coles Myer Card and Coles Myer Source MasterCard were renamed Coles Group Card and Coles Group Source MasterCard respectively and as such were no longer affiliated with Myer.
The flagship store is located in the Bourke Street Mall
in Melbourne and is in the process of a $300 million dollar redevelopment which will be officially opened in April 2011.
In 2006, Myer announced the opening of new stores, starting with four former Harris Scarfe
stores (two in South Australia and two in Victoria). Further to this, in 2008 in Sydney, Myer opened two new stores in Sydney at Westfield Eastgardens
and Centro Bankstown
replacing the former David Jones Limited
stores, while David Jones Limited
replaced the Myer store in Westfield Burwood
, and stated it would open a store in the Stockland Townsville
centre in early 2009 which didn't happen due to issues with buying of tenants for the land.
In 2007 Chairman Bill Wavish stated Myer was willing to build new stores if necessary, and that new locations could be in any city or town with a population over 40,000 people.
On 22 September 2007, Myer's Liverpool Street building in Hobart was destroyed by a fire that is believed to have started in the cosmetic section. Estimates placed the damage costs at $50 million for the building alone with many millions more for all the stock which was destroyed. The building including its historic façade was subsequently demolished. The adjacent Murray Street building suffered substantial smoke and water damage. Within a day of the fire, Myer issued a statement saying it would be rebuilding in Hobart. They reopened the Murray Street section of their store on 16 November - 44 days after the fire. Myer also stated that they will build a new store that may take up to 3 years to build and will add 2,000 m² of space. Whilst that development is taking place in the damaged part of the store, Myer will be using a site in Macquarie Street for departments unable to fit into the Murray Street building, in a Harvey Norman
style "home store".
Myer opened a store in the redeveloped Top Ryde shopping centre in northern Sydney in 2010. There was previously a Grace Bros store at this centre from 1964 until closure in early 1985.
In April 2008, Myer announced that it would open 3 new stores in Queensland. The first two stores were planned to open in 2010 at Westfield Garden City
- Upper Mount Gravatt, Robina Town Centre
with the third store planned to open in Mackay
in 2011.
Myer also announced that it would open a store at Stockland Green Hills
- East Maitland in 2011 when the redevelopment was completed, later delayed until 2013.
In July 2008, Myer stated it planned to expand into the Middle East and open its first overseas store in Dubai
, but by March 2009 had put such plans on hold.
In September 2009, it was announced that three more stores would open at Tuggerah
on the New South Wales
Central Coast
, Woden
in Canberra
and Robina
on the Gold Coast, Queensland
. In total, at the time of launching its prospectus, Myer stated it had signed conditional lease agreements for 12 locations to open progressively from 2010 to 2013 with a plan to reach 80 stores by 2014.
In 2011 Myer launched an online shopping site, myfind.com based in Hong Kong
(where there is no sales tax) for people in Australia.
Myer will continue to operate Myer.com.au based in Melbourne
where sales tax applies.
(short) and plus sized
clothing is kept in separate areas to regular sized clothing. There are a large number of concession stores that sell women's clothing.
Cosmetics
, Fragrances
& Personal Care has a higher expenditure on labour, as most counters require their own staff and is usually positioned near the main store entrance.
Menswear is usually located on a separate floor to womenswear, the labels carried lie much more in the mid range. Unlike womenswear, the department has areas devoted to accessories, business shirts, suits, shoes and underwear. Designer and concession brands are available in selected stores, as is formal hire.
Fashion Accessories houses women's handbags, scarves, hats, belts, purses/wallets, jewellery, hosiery, socks; women's & men's watches and sunglasses.
The range of men's and ladies' shoes carried varies by store. Designer shoe ranges are only available in limited stores.
Intimate Apparel
section sells women's underwear, lingerie, sleepwear and gowns. Some staff are trained in fitting bras, and occasionally some underwear brands will have a fitter in store to give advice.
Homewares includes cookware, kitchenware, tabletop (dinnerware, glassware & cutlery), manchester and napery. Usually extremely busy during sales, this department also contains the Gift Registry.
Miss Shop and Men's Youth departments are targeted for shoppers ages from mid-teens to early thirties. Different music to the rest of the store is played within these areas. There are also music videos showing either in fitting rooms or on the shop floor. Merchandising principles are relaxed from what is required in womenswear and menswear; and abstract fixtures and visual displays are often used. For example, items can be hung sideways on hangers, mannequins are sometimes dressed "messily" or clothes may be stacked on chairs and milk crates.
At the Melbourne City store, both these departments are located in "The Basement" and is much larger than in other stores, at almost 6,000m2. The staff are dressed casually to reflect the youth target market. There are also a small number of concession stores within this area. The concept has been expanded to selected stores - such as Warringah Mall, Chatswood, Parramatta, Sydney City, Perth City and in the new Murray Street store in Hobart, but generally on a smaller scale.
Childrenswear is separated into babywear, boyswear and girlswear.
In July 2004, Brazin Limited, which operates Virgin Megastores Australia, entered into an agreement with Myer to create Virgin entertainment locations in Myer stores. Under the agreement, Myer stock was acquired and Myer pre-recorded audio and video departments were re-branded to Virgin. Virgin has not renewed its concession agreement with Myer and from mid August 2010, Virgin entertainment ceased operations within Myer stores. The departure of Virgin Entertainment coincided with the release of a new 'My Entertainment' in some old Myer locations with reduced stock levels compared to Virgin. Myer intends to close its DVD / CD depts, by the end of 2011.
Myer operated its own direct mail order
company, Myer Direct, from 1989 until its sale to Ezibuy in January 2002.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's largest department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
chain, retailing a broad range of merchandise including women's, men's and children's clothing, footwear and accessories; cosmetics and fragrance; homewares; electrical; furniture and bedding; toys; books and stationery; food and confectionery; and travel goods.
Early history
The Myer retail group was started by Sidney MyerSidney Myer
Sidney Baevski Myer was a Russian Australian businessman and philanthropist, best known for creating Myer, Australia's largest chain of department stores.-Early life:...
, who migrated from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
to Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
in 1899 with very little money and little knowledge of English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
to join his elder brother, Elcon Myer (1875-1938), who had left Russia two years earlier. They opened the first Myer store in Bendigo, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
in 1900. After prospering, the second store opened in 1908.
In 1911 Myer purchased the business of Wright and Neil, Drapers
Drapery
Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles . It may refer to cloth used for decorative purposes – such as around windows – or to the trade of retailing cloth, originally mostly for clothing, formerly conducted by drapers.In art history, drapery refers to any cloth or...
, in Bourke Street, Melbourne
Bourke Street, Melbourne
Bourke Street is one of Melbourne's best known streets. Historically been regarded as Melbourne's "second street", with the main street being Collins Street and "busier than Bourke Street" is a popular catchphrase. Bourke Street has traditionally been Melbourne's entertainment hub...
, near the General Post Office
General Post Office, Melbourne
The Melbourne General Post Office , is a former post office in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
, and a new building was completed and opened in 1914. From this base in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Myer built Australia's largest chain of department stores, and the only chain with stores in all Australian states.
In 1918, the Doveton woollen mills at Ballarat were purchased, and in 1921 a new building fronting Post Office Place was added at Melbourne and in the following years Myer purchased adjoining properties, eventually building a store known as the Myer Emporium. Myer expanded to Lonsdale Street
Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Lonsdale Street is located in the centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, part of the Hoddle Grid, it runs roughly east-west. Lonsdale Street's eastern end intersects with Spring Street while its western end intersects with Spencer Street. It is home to multiple office buildings, courts,...
in the 1920s.
The Myer Emporium grew with the purchase of the old established businesses of Robertson & Moffat and Stephens & Sons. In 1925, Myer Emporium Ltd was listed on the Melbourne Stock Exchange and the new building on the Lonsdale Street
Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Lonsdale Street is located in the centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, part of the Hoddle Grid, it runs roughly east-west. Lonsdale Street's eastern end intersects with Spring Street while its western end intersects with Spencer Street. It is home to multiple office buildings, courts,...
frontage was begun. In Adelaide, in 1925, the company Myer SA Stores Ltd acquired a controlling interest in Marshall's department store and its shares continued to be listed on the Adelaide Stock Exchange until Myer Emporium Ltd made a successful takeover bid in 1966. A separate building in Queensberry Street, Melbourne, was put up in 1928, and the Collins Street
Collins Street, Melbourne
Collins Street is a major street in the Melbourne central business district and runs approximately east to west.It is notable as Melbourne's traditional main street and best known street, is often regarded as Australia's premier street, with some of the country's finest Victorian era buildings.The...
businesses of T. Webb and Sons, china importers, and W. H. Rocke and Company, house furnishers, were bought and transferred to the Bourke-street building. By 1934, the public company had a paid-up capital of nearly £2,500,000. The company was then employing 5300 people with medical and nursing aid for the staff, and rest homes for them at the seaside and in the Dandenong Ranges
Dandenong Ranges
The Dandenong Ranges are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately 35 km east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
.
On the death of Sidney Myer in 1934, leadership of the company fell to Elcon Myer, and on the death of Elcon in 1938, leadership went to their nephew Norman Myer. Norman Myer led the company until his death in 1956.
Myer grew by developing its own stores (becoming one of Australia's major property owners and developers in the process) and acquiring other department stores, including Adelaide's Marshall's, Western Australia's Boans
Boans
Boans is the name of an iconic department store that operated in Perth, Western Australia between 1895 and 1986. The store was founded by Harry Boan and his brother Benjamin who both came to Perth in 1895 from Broken Hill in western New South Wales. Harry and another brother, Ernest, had...
in 1984, Queensland's Barry and Roberts and in New South Wales they acquired Farmers & Co in 1961 and Grace Brothers in 1983.
Target, Grace Bros and merger with GJ Coles
In 1968, Myer acquired Geelong's Lindsay's stores, renaming the business TargetTarget (Australia)
Target Australia Pty Ltd is an Australian department store chain owned by Wesfarmers . It operates 172 Target stores and 119 Target Country stores making 291 combined stores with its head office located in North Geelong, Victoria. It sells clothing, cosmetics, toys, homewares, electrical and...
following the purchase of name and logo from US Target Corporation
Target Corporation
Target Corporation, doing business as Target, is an American retailing company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the second-largest discount retailer in the United States, behind Walmart. The company is ranked at number 33 on the Fortune 500 and is a component of the Standard & Poor's...
and positioning it as a discount department store chain.
In 1983, Grace Bros.
Grace Bros.
Grace Bros was an Australian department store chain, founded in 1885. It was bought by Myer in 1983. There were 25 stores across New South Wales and the ACT, until they were re-branded under the Myer name in 2004.-History:...
bought Myer NSW, and then in July of that year Myer acquired Grace Bros. Holdings Ltd. The Myer store on Market and Pitt Sts in Sydney became the main Grace Bros. store.
In 1984, Myer acquired Boans Ltd, the dominant Western Australian department store chain and embarked on a major redevelopment of its Perth City Store.
In 1985 the Myer Emporium (and Target, its discount department store) merged with GJ Coles & Coy forming Coles Myer Limited, then Australia's largest retailer. Myer remained a distinct entity within the new corporate structure until it was sold in 2006.
At the post-Christmas sales in 1992, the glass doors to the Grace Bros Sydney City store were shattered by a stampede of shoppers.
In 2000, Coles Myer CEO Dennis Eck, faced with lower sales and profits from Myer and Grace Bros. stores took the department stores down market, reducing service levels, increasing stock volumes on the selling floor and introducing product to appeal to younger consumers. In doing so, he ended up replicating the approach of another of Coles Myer's chains, Target. The resulting effect included reduced customer visits and reduced units sold per transaction. In 2001, Coles Myer set about to reposition the store to appeal to customers lost in the down market experiment.
In 2003, one of the key changes made by the recently appointed Managing Director, Dawn Robertson, was to classify each Myer Grace Bros. store using a grid system referencing the socio-economic status of the area, its turnover and growth potential. Larger city-centre stores would rank at the top of the grid and smaller regional stores would rank at the bottom of the grid. The grid would affect the merchandise allocated to each store, rather than selling the same range of product in downtown Melbourne as in regional Queensland.
On 13 February 2004, Grace Bros. stores were rebranded as Myer.
In April 2004, Myer re-opened its Bondi Junction, New South Wales
Bondi Junction, New South Wales
Bondi Junction is an eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bondi Junction is located 6 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the Waverley....
, store which replaced a former Grace Bros. store closed in April 2002 to make way for the redevelopment of Westfield Bondi Junction. It was the first Myer store to open in several years and incorporated new features such as white glossy floor tiles, extensive use of glass, and greater use of mannequins.
Under managing director Dawn Robertson, Myer began to target the Sydney market more strongly, to challenge the position of chief rival David Jones
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
particularly in ladies fashion. In February 2004, Myer held its Sydney fashion parade the day before David Jones. On 9 August 2004, Myer staged a fashion parade open-air in Martin Place, gaining widespread attention, and again was held the day before David Jones
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
' show.
Divestment by Coles Myer
On 17 August 2005, Coles announced that within 12 months, it would decide to demerge, divest or retain Myer. Thirteen expressions of interest were made for all or part of Myer.On 13 March 2006, Coles Myer announced it would sell Myer to a consortium controlled by US private equity group Newbridge Capital, part of the Texas Pacific group. The consortium also included the Myer family, who held a 5% stake. The new owners, who also secured the freehold on the flagship Bourke Street store, indicated that they would not radically change the business, at least in the short term, and had no plans to redevelop the Bourke Street site as this would impact too heavily on profitability during the construction period. Texas Pacific also have interests in UK department store Debenhams
Debenhams
Debenhams plc is a British retailer operating under a department store format in the UK, Ireland and Denmark, and franchise stores in other countries. The Company was founded in the eighteenth century as a single store in London and has now grown to around 160 shops...
and high-end US retailer Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus, formerly Neiman-Marcus, is a luxury specialty retail department store operated by the Neiman Marcus Group in the United States. The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas, and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth...
. This sale was completed for $A1.4 bn on 2 June 2006.
Under new owners
After being divested from Coles Myer (later Coles Group, then purchased by WesfarmersWesfarmers
Wesfarmers Limited is one of Australia’s largest public companies and one of Australia's largest retailers. Its headquarters are in Perth, Western Australia....
), new owners Newbridge Capital and the Myer family appointed chairman Bill Wavish and chief executive Bernie Brookes, both formerly of Woolworths
Woolworths Limited
Woolworths Limited is a major Australian company with extensive retail interest throughout Australia and New Zealand. It is the:* largest retail company in Australia and New Zealand by market capitalisation and sales...
.
Beginning July 2006, Myer held a "History Making Clearance" to clear out excess stock deemed either unprofitable or unpopular, and reduced inventories from $1.5 billion to $750 million, and all store-specific warehouses were closed.
Former Miss Universe
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
Jennifer Hawkins
Jennifer Hawkins
Jennifer Hawkins is an Australian beauty queen, model and television presenter best known as Miss Universe 2004 and the face of Australian department store Myer.-Early life:...
began appearing in campaigns for Myer in 2006 and in January 2007 signed a $4 million deal to be the "face" of Myer for four years.
Myer withdrew from the Coles Group part-owned FlyBuys rewards program on 1 February 2007.
In March 2007, Myer announced first half earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of $123 million, an increase of 84% on the previous year. This represents a profit margin of 6.8%, compared with 3.9% in the previous corresponding period. According to chairman Bill Wavish, all Myer stores were now profitable, and all stores were more profitable than in the previous year. Myer acquired four Harris Scarfe
Harris Scarfe
Harris Scarfe Department Stores was founded in Adelaide, South Australia in 1849. At its peak, Adelaide was home to several major South Australian department stores , of which Harris Scarfe is the sole...
stores (including regaining a store it divested to Harris Scarfe in 1998) and took a minority shareholding in Harris Scarfe.
The Mymerch system, developed with IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
and Oracle, cost $99 million and was implemented early April 2007. Among other functions, Mymerch will beef up Myer's ability to carry out statistical analysis of customer habits giving it greater capacity to forecast sales trends and target promotions.
Myer's profit turnaround was tempered in April 2007 by the loss of key staff. Bob Boutin, apparel director, Mark Bingemann, women's wear business manager and Jasmine Bingemann, footwear
Footwear
Footwear consists of garments worn on the feet, for fashion, protection against the environment, and adornment. Being barefoot is commonly associated with poverty, but some cultures chose not to wear footwear at least in some situations....
and accessories
Fashion accessory
Fashion accessories are decorative items that supplement and complement clothes, such as jewelery, gloves, handbags, hats, belts, scarves, wigs, watches, sunglasses, pins, stockings, bow ties, hand fans, leg warmers, leggings, neckties, suspenders, and tights....
manager all resigned within a short period. This followed reports of management dissatisfaction over the direction of the fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
business signified by the defection of designers such as Alex Perry
Alex Perry
Alex Perry is an Australian fashion designer, particularly noted for his designs in womenswear. After graduating from East Sydney Technical College in 1984, Perry worked as a model agent representing Australian models for international modelling agencies. In 1992 Perry opened his first atelier...
and Tigerlilly to David Jones
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
.
In June 2007, a consortium comprising the Myer family, Colonial First State
Colonial First State
Colonial First State was established in 1988 and is now one of Australia's leading wealth management groups, with more than A$90 billion under management. It is owned by the Commonwealth Bank Group.- Product range :...
and GIC Real Estate (Singapore) announced it would be purchasing Myer's Melbourne CBD store. The Bourke Street part of the store was planned to be redeveloped by 2009, with Myer taking a 60-year lease, but the development was not completed until March 2011. The Lonsdale Street part of the store closed in 2009.
In September 2009, following rumours the previous month, Myer indicated it would float the business at an indicative share price range of $3.90 to $4.90 when it listed on 2 November, giving it a market capitalisation between $2.3 billion and $2.8 billion. The final issue price was $4.10, but by August 2011 the stock had slumped to as low as $2.09.
"MYER one" rewards program
The MYER one program was introduced in August 2004 after Coles Myer discontinued its shareholder discount card the previous month.It initially credited 1 point per $1 spent up to $2500 per annum; 1.5 points per $1 spent from $2500 to $5000 per annum; and 2 points per $1 spent for $5000+ per annum. Each 1,250 points accrued would earn the customer a $25 gift card, provided $1,500 was spent each year. With the relaunch of the Myer store card in November 2006, this changed to awards 2 points per $1 spent, regardless of annual spend, with 2,000 points required to receive a $20 gift card. Members who pay with a Myer store card receive an additional point per dollar spent. Customers also earn 1 point for every $1 spent outside of Myer when using the Myer Visa card. MYER one members are sent a quarterly update, in addition to special member offers, including discounts, a free copy of the "Myer Emporium" magazine, product samples and "gift with purchase" offers.
Myer revamped its MYER one program by introducing a graduated rewards system with three levels including MYER one, MYER one Silver and MYER one Gold. Each reward level is dependent on customer spend and confers exclusive benefits. In September 2010, Myer stated there were 3.7 million members and five million cards in circulation. Of these, over 20,000 had Gold status, spending over $7,500 per annum. Sales attributed to members accounted for 68% of total Myer sales. Gift cards valued at $51 million had been provided to members as rewards in the previous year.
Myer store and credit cards
Myer originally had a store card managed by Australian Retail Financial Network (ARFN), sold in 1995 to GE Money. This was superseded by a Coles Myer Card which could be used at all Coles Myer stores. This was augmented by the Coles Myer Source MasterCardMasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
, also managed by GE Money.
Following its sale, Myer relaunched the Myer card in October 2006 in conjunction with GE Money. According to GE Money, 125,000 accounts had been opened by August 2007.
In November 2007, Myer launched a Visa credit card, also in conjunction with GE Money. Myer stated it was prepared to wear losses from the card for two years and that its objective was to drive increased loyalty from the card (which links with the Myer One card) rather than being profitable in its own right. It expected to sign 100,000 customers to the Visa card by November 2008. Myer reported it had signed 15,000 customers to its Visa card in the first five weeks from launch, half of whom were converts from the existing store card.
In 2007, the Coles Myer Card and Coles Myer Source MasterCard were renamed Coles Group Card and Coles Group Source MasterCard respectively and as such were no longer affiliated with Myer.
Store locations
Myer has stores in all Australian states and the Australian Capital Territory. Stores are located in all the capital cities (except Darwin) and their suburbs, and selected regional towns and cities.The flagship store is located in the Bourke Street Mall
Bourke Street, Melbourne
Bourke Street is one of Melbourne's best known streets. Historically been regarded as Melbourne's "second street", with the main street being Collins Street and "busier than Bourke Street" is a popular catchphrase. Bourke Street has traditionally been Melbourne's entertainment hub...
in Melbourne and is in the process of a $300 million dollar redevelopment which will be officially opened in April 2011.
In 2006, Myer announced the opening of new stores, starting with four former Harris Scarfe
Harris Scarfe
Harris Scarfe Department Stores was founded in Adelaide, South Australia in 1849. At its peak, Adelaide was home to several major South Australian department stores , of which Harris Scarfe is the sole...
stores (two in South Australia and two in Victoria). Further to this, in 2008 in Sydney, Myer opened two new stores in Sydney at Westfield Eastgardens
Westfield Eastgardens
Westfield Eastgardens is a shopping centre that is located in the suburb of Eastgardens in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The centre was the largest shopping centre in Australia when it opened in September 1987. The centre is owned by the Terrace Tower Group but operated and managed on a long...
and Centro Bankstown
Centro Bankstown
Centro Bankstown, formerly known as Bankstown Square, is a major regional shopping centre situated in the central business district of the City of Bankstown. It has over 310 specialty stores including a number of major retail stores. Opened in 1966, the shopping centre has undergone several...
replacing the former David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
stores, while David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited
David Jones Limited , colloquially known as DJs, is a high-end Australian department store chain.David Jones was founded in 1838 by David Jones, a Welsh immigrant, and is claimed to be the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name. It...
replaced the Myer store in Westfield Burwood
Westfield Burwood
Westfield Burwood is a large shopping centre in Sydney's Inner West suburb of Burwood. First opened in 1966 and completely rebuilt in 2000, the centre currently features a David Jones department store on 3 levels, Kmart, Target, Coles, Woolworths, a food court, around 250 specialty stores and a 12...
, and stated it would open a store in the Stockland Townsville
Stockland Townsville
Stockland Townsville Shopping Centre is located in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. The shopping centre is often referred to simply "Stockland" or sometimes "Stockies" locally and is Townsville's largest shopping centre. In the early 1990s, Stockland Townsville opened as a major upgrade to what...
centre in early 2009 which didn't happen due to issues with buying of tenants for the land.
In 2007 Chairman Bill Wavish stated Myer was willing to build new stores if necessary, and that new locations could be in any city or town with a population over 40,000 people.
On 22 September 2007, Myer's Liverpool Street building in Hobart was destroyed by a fire that is believed to have started in the cosmetic section. Estimates placed the damage costs at $50 million for the building alone with many millions more for all the stock which was destroyed. The building including its historic façade was subsequently demolished. The adjacent Murray Street building suffered substantial smoke and water damage. Within a day of the fire, Myer issued a statement saying it would be rebuilding in Hobart. They reopened the Murray Street section of their store on 16 November - 44 days after the fire. Myer also stated that they will build a new store that may take up to 3 years to build and will add 2,000 m² of space. Whilst that development is taking place in the damaged part of the store, Myer will be using a site in Macquarie Street for departments unable to fit into the Murray Street building, in a Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman
Harvey Norman is a large Australian-based retailer of electrical, computer, furniture, entertainment and bedding goods. It is effectively a franchise and the main brand owned by Harvey Norman Holdings Limited...
style "home store".
Myer opened a store in the redeveloped Top Ryde shopping centre in northern Sydney in 2010. There was previously a Grace Bros store at this centre from 1964 until closure in early 1985.
In April 2008, Myer announced that it would open 3 new stores in Queensland. The first two stores were planned to open in 2010 at Westfield Garden City
Westfield Garden City
Westfield Garden City, better known as Garden City, is one of Brisbane's major shopping centres, located in the suburb of Upper Mount Gravatt. The centre is operated by Westfield, and previously operated by AMP Limited before the takeover in 2003...
- Upper Mount Gravatt, Robina Town Centre
Robina Town Centre
Robina Town Centre is a large shopping centre covering in the suburb of Robina, Queensland with over 350 retail outlets covering over . - History :...
with the third store planned to open in Mackay
Mackay, Queensland
Mackay is a city on the eastern coast of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, on the Pioneer River. Mackay is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar....
in 2011.
Myer also announced that it would open a store at Stockland Green Hills
Stockland Green Hills
Stockland Green Hills is a major shopping Centre located in East Maitland, an eastern suburb of Maitland, New South Wales Australia.It is located on Molly Morgan Drive, East Maitland near the New England Highway, on a parcel of land, and primarily serves the Maitland, Lower Hunter and the Upper...
- East Maitland in 2011 when the redevelopment was completed, later delayed until 2013.
In July 2008, Myer stated it planned to expand into the Middle East and open its first overseas store in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, but by March 2009 had put such plans on hold.
In September 2009, it was announced that three more stores would open at Tuggerah
Tuggerah, New South Wales
Tuggerah is a suburb of the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Main North Line and Sydney-Newcastle Freeway about 90 km north of Sydney. It is part of the Wyong Shire local government area....
on the New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
Central Coast
Central Coast, New South Wales
The Central Coast is an urban region in the Australian state of New South Wales, located on the coast north of Sydney and south of Lake Macquarie....
, Woden
Phillip, Australian Capital Territory
Phillip is a suburb of Canberra, Australia in the district of Woden Valley. It is located in the centre of the district and contains the district's main commercial centre, Woden Town Centre. The suburb is named after Arthur Phillip, the first Governor of New South Wales. The suburb name was...
in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
and Robina
Robina, Queensland
Robina is a suburb on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. At the 2006 Census, Robina had a population of 19,182.The Robina Town Centre shopping centre and Bond University are located in Robina.- History :...
on the Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
. In total, at the time of launching its prospectus, Myer stated it had signed conditional lease agreements for 12 locations to open progressively from 2010 to 2013 with a plan to reach 80 stores by 2014.
Online shopping
In October 2007, Myer launched an online gift store, including electronic goods, perfumes, miss shop clothing and gift cards.In 2011 Myer launched an online shopping site, myfind.com based in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
(where there is no sales tax) for people in Australia.
Myer will continue to operate Myer.com.au based in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
where sales tax applies.
Departments
Womenswear is usually prominently featured within each store and will often be the largest department. Myer carries various mass market labels in womenswear, with a selection of designer clothing available only in city stores. PetitePetite sizes
In fashion and clothing, a petite size is a standard clothing size designed to fit women of shorter height, typically or less.-Changes in pattern measurements and design:...
(short) and plus sized
Plus-size clothing
Plus size clothing is a general term given to clothing proportioned specifically for overweight people. Also called Outsize in some countries , this term has been losing favour since the 1990s...
clothing is kept in separate areas to regular sized clothing. There are a large number of concession stores that sell women's clothing.
Cosmetics
Cosmetics
Cosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, towelettes, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, hair sprays and...
, Fragrances
Perfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
& Personal Care has a higher expenditure on labour, as most counters require their own staff and is usually positioned near the main store entrance.
Menswear is usually located on a separate floor to womenswear, the labels carried lie much more in the mid range. Unlike womenswear, the department has areas devoted to accessories, business shirts, suits, shoes and underwear. Designer and concession brands are available in selected stores, as is formal hire.
Fashion Accessories houses women's handbags, scarves, hats, belts, purses/wallets, jewellery, hosiery, socks; women's & men's watches and sunglasses.
The range of men's and ladies' shoes carried varies by store. Designer shoe ranges are only available in limited stores.
Intimate Apparel
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...
section sells women's underwear, lingerie, sleepwear and gowns. Some staff are trained in fitting bras, and occasionally some underwear brands will have a fitter in store to give advice.
Homewares includes cookware, kitchenware, tabletop (dinnerware, glassware & cutlery), manchester and napery. Usually extremely busy during sales, this department also contains the Gift Registry.
Miss Shop and Men's Youth departments are targeted for shoppers ages from mid-teens to early thirties. Different music to the rest of the store is played within these areas. There are also music videos showing either in fitting rooms or on the shop floor. Merchandising principles are relaxed from what is required in womenswear and menswear; and abstract fixtures and visual displays are often used. For example, items can be hung sideways on hangers, mannequins are sometimes dressed "messily" or clothes may be stacked on chairs and milk crates.
At the Melbourne City store, both these departments are located in "The Basement" and is much larger than in other stores, at almost 6,000m2. The staff are dressed casually to reflect the youth target market. There are also a small number of concession stores within this area. The concept has been expanded to selected stores - such as Warringah Mall, Chatswood, Parramatta, Sydney City, Perth City and in the new Murray Street store in Hobart, but generally on a smaller scale.
Childrenswear is separated into babywear, boyswear and girlswear.
In July 2004, Brazin Limited, which operates Virgin Megastores Australia, entered into an agreement with Myer to create Virgin entertainment locations in Myer stores. Under the agreement, Myer stock was acquired and Myer pre-recorded audio and video departments were re-branded to Virgin. Virgin has not renewed its concession agreement with Myer and from mid August 2010, Virgin entertainment ceased operations within Myer stores. The departure of Virgin Entertainment coincided with the release of a new 'My Entertainment' in some old Myer locations with reduced stock levels compared to Virgin. Myer intends to close its DVD / CD depts, by the end of 2011.
Myer operated its own direct mail order
Mail order
Mail order is a term which describes the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote method such as through a telephone call or web site. Then, the products are delivered to the customer...
company, Myer Direct, from 1989 until its sale to Ezibuy in January 2002.