{"id":87117,"date":"1999-12-31T00:40:00","date_gmt":"1999-12-30T13:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/smartoffice.com.au\/gerry-harvey-gets-gloomy-predicts-mass-closures\/"},"modified":"1999-12-31T00:40:00","modified_gmt":"1999-12-30T13:40:00","slug":"gerry-harvey-gets-gloomy-predicts-mass-closures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.strixdevelopment.net\/smartoffice\/1999\/12\/31\/gerry-harvey-gets-gloomy-predicts-mass-closures\/","title":{"rendered":"Gerry Harvey Gets Gloomy, Predicts Mass Closures"},"content":{"rendered":"

Baton down the hatches: Harvey Norman boss is predicting dire times ahead for retail.<\/p>\n


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As Harvey Norman owned Clive Peeters and Rick Hart outlets run aground, Gerry Harvey predicts similar fate for other electronics businesses. <\/font><\/p>\n

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 “There’s no doubt in the world in the next six months many (electronic retailers) will have to close. It’s just a matter of how many,” he said in an interview this week. <\/div>\n
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 Times are a-changing, the 71 year old admits. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
“Every year in my life I’ve said this is going to be the best one ever”, confessing he no longer holds this sunny outlook, predicting a dismal sales period in H2 for Aussie retail. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
 However, there was some light at the end of the tunnel – called iPad 2, which was “selling like crazy” in store, he said, with Android’s playing catch up. <\/font><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
But laptops and flat screens were delivering less joy to the bottom line – while volumes are up, profit margins and revenue are tightening.  <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
However, the retailer did recently report growth in white goods, cooking, home appliances and floor care. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
He also said competition from online traders was “negligible”, which is interesting, considering only yesterday the Harvey Norman Chairman confirmed his giant was entering online world of selling next month. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
 Read Gerry Harvey: We Are Going Online, Jump On HERE <\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
“Eighty percent of our retail products will be online in September,” he confirmed yesterday. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
“I’m sick of talking about online [retail] to journalists” a fed up Harvey added. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
 <\/div>\n

These latest comments suggest Harvey is still in denial about the elephant in the room that is online trading (or lack of) and the huge impact it has had on his bricks and mortar business. <\/p><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
Gerry Harvey’s previous refusal to sell goods on its website may be one of the reasons behind its dull sales figures – posting a 3.6% fall in its most recent results last week. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Global sales for the year to June 30th were $6.18 billion, with the retailer saying revenue had fallen in its franchisees due to a challenging operating environment, a stronger Australian dollar and falling TV prices. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
And this is part of an ongoing southward profit trend at the retailer.  <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
In its previous results to December 31 profits slid 16.5% to $198.61m (before tax) – from high of $237.77m, in spite of having increased its store numbers from 195 to 198. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Harvey’s have now moved to close seven Clive Peeters and Rick Hart group stores due to poor sales following its acquisition last year for $55M, announced last week. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
 Read Harvey Norman Close Stores As Sales In OZ Fall HERE<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
 In comparison, Harvey’s biggest rival and darlings of the web, JB Hi Fi, announced a 13.3% rise in profits and an 8.3% rise in sales.  <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
And ditto for Dick Smith, who also have a massive online presence, reporting a 7.1% jump in comparable sales for the full year to June 26, which it attributed to “the refreshed online store.”<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
 <\/div>\n

<\/font><\/div>\n

Doesn’t that tell you something, Gerry? <\/font><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Baton down the hatches: Harvey Norman boss is predicting dire times ahead for retail.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-87117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","hentry","category-archive","category-hardware","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"yoast_head":"\nGerry Harvey Gets Gloomy, Predicts Mass Closures - Smart Office<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.strixdevelopment.net\/smartoffice\/1999\/12\/31\/gerry-harvey-gets-gloomy-predicts-mass-closures\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gerry Harvey Gets Gloomy, Predicts Mass Closures - 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