In Appliance Retailer’s Mid-Year Report Card, Dick Smith Holdings Director — Investor Relations David Cooke, explains that strong customer support and trust in the brand has been an important driver of sales growth in the first half of 2015.
We’ve enjoyed a very strong first half of 2015 with sales growth in Australia of 12.2%. We’ve also experienced consumers becoming increasingly complementary of our products, service and value offer.
What are your predictions for the second half of the year?
We anticipate further growth in the second half of the year, with customers continuing to support our strong value propositions and enjoying our unparalleled, convenient store network. We’re also excited about our fashion electronics brand, Move, which has grown significantly since we opened our first store in 2013. Since then we have opened nine stores across four states, with more store openings planned for the second half of 2015.
Dick Smith has been a retailer of choice for small and medium size companies for a number of years and is a preferred supplier of computer and electronic equipment. That makes tax time important, as computing and mobile phones are a significant part of our business. We hope that the 2015 Federal Budget reforms will assist in improving small business confidence and growth, and therefore increase sales of our business related products.
What opportunities do you see for the electrical retailing industry?
We believe the outlook for consumer electronic retail industry is improving. In addition to the Federal Budget benefits for small businesses, we anticipate the industry will experience an element of inflation reflecting the fall of the Australian dollar in recent months, which should benefit prices. There is also a strong pipeline of new products coming into the market which consumers are eager to own.
We expect that the low interest rate environment, strong house pricing and the share market, will also help improve consumer sentiment. What threats are currently present in the industry?
The main threats to the industry appear to be related more closely related to macroeconomics, with consumer sentiment, unemployment and disposable income all influencing consumer behaviour buying new consumer electronics.
What is your favourite product of 2015 so far?
Fitness continues to be a strong growth category, with a number of products such as wearables and heart rate monitors performing extremely well. Our share of the category is over 20 per cent, making it a strong performer for both Dick Smith and Move. One of my favourite products is the Wireless Activity and Sleep Tracker. It’s affordable fitness motivation, right on your wrist.