The Reinvention of Postie Plus – a Pricing Revolution

Media Release Embargoed until Thursday 14th April: 00:01 GMT

The Reinvention of Postie Plus – a Pricing Revolution

One of the countries longest standing retailers, Postie Plus is reinventing its business model under new ownership and reframing value for Kiwi shoppers by setting a new benchmark for quality at affordable prices.

Global retailer Pepkor, acquired Postie Plus from voluntary administration in July 2014.

65 of the 82 stores were retained and over 500 staff kept their jobs.

Since that time, Pepkor has made a significant investment into the turnaround of the business.

Postie is the first New Zealand investment for Pepkor, which has been trading since 1965 and boasts more than 3,000 clothing, textile and footwear outlets across Australia, Africa and Eastern Europe with more than $4 billion in annual sales.

Pepkor is a subsidiary of Steinhoff International, listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange and owner of Freedom NZ.

Founded on the West Coast in 1909 and built into a large retailer by the Dellaca family, Postie has always been a cornerstone of the New Zealand high street and will continue to play an important role in Kiwi communities under Pepkor’s ownership.

With local leadership at the helm and 502 New Zealanders currently employed by the retailer, new owners Pepkor are committed to the success of the business in New Zealand.

With a solid platform now in place, Postie is launching its pricing revolution and will re--ticket over one million garments with lower prices, resulting in a big win for Kiwi shoppers.

The outcome will be prices that are set according to customer affordability not retail margin, making quality affordable for Kiwis.

Henry Lee, Postie CEO comments, “In turning this business around, we’re giving Kiwi shoppers a much better deal.

Reducing our profit margins allows us to pass that saving on to our customers.

It also means we position ourselves to compete strongly in what is increasingly becoming a global marketplace."

Access to the retail expertise, global buying power and financial resources of Pepkor, has allowed Postie to reduce overall prices by 30% while maintaining the great quality for which the retailer is known.

Jason Murray, South East Asia Managing Director for Pepkor says that for too long New Zealanders have been forced to believe they can either have a quality garment or a good price, but not both.

“We think that it’s time for that to change so we’re making it happen for Kiwis with our new Responsible Retail model.

Typically, Kiwi consumers on a budget have to buy cheap clothes in big box, multi--category retailers with no service, or they can look for discounted items in better quality chains.

Now, Postie customers don’t have to choose between great quality and great prices – they can have both, everyday."

Murray continues, “Underpinning Postie’s great quality and prices is a robust supply chain that leverages Pepkor’s global brands and vendor base, that works closely with our centralised sourcing office in China and that operates to a strict code of conduct."

“Responsible Retail also means giving back to the community so as part of this initiative we will be launching the Postie Community Trust, which will raise funds that can be directed back into communities where they are needed most”, he concludes.

Already a supporter of Kids Can, Dress for Success, Migrante Aoteroa and Earth Action the new Postie Community Trust will see the retailer providing assistance to many more Kiwis in need.

The Postie pricing revolution heralds a new age of ‘Responsible Retailing’ putting the consumer firmly back in the driving seat, where they no longer have to choose between quality or value.

Some of the new pricing initiatives include: High quality kid’s winter thermals retailing from just $6.

This compares to $12 previously and up to $15 in the general market 100% wool Merino cardigans at $25, 36% cheaper than Postie’s price last winter and arguably the best value in New Zealand Kid’s flannel PJ’s at $10, down 50% from last winters price of $20 The new pricing model will allow the company to compete in New Zealand’s highly competitive retail market, which is being increasingly pressured by online competition and the bricks & mortar entrance of overseas retailers like Zara and H&M.

The introduction of these global players to the relatively small New Zealand retail market means a strong customer proposition and access to scale is more important than ever to ensure long term success.

By reducing profit margin to make quality affordable for everyone, Postie is redefining retail in New Zealand, laying the groundwork for a successful future and putting the power back in the hands of Kiwi shoppers.

Notes to Editor:

Cost of living data taken from taken from Statistics NZ Consumers Price Index: December 2015.

Next CPI results available 18th April 2016 http://www.stats.govt.nz/browse_for_stats/economic_indicators/CPI_inflation/Cons umersPriceIndex_HOTPDec15qtr.aspx Average weekly household clothing spend taken from statistics NZ Household Economic Survey year ended June 2013.

Next survey results available May 2016.

http://www.stats.govt.nz/browse_for_stats/people_and_communities/Households/ HouseholdEconomicSurvey_HOTPYeJun13/Commentary.aspx

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