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Dick Smith is looking to the potential overseas expansion of its “fashtronics” Move chain, Fairfax Media has today reported.In September, Dick Smith announced that Move stores will open in seven Sydney airport locations from February 2015, stating it would look at further opportunities with duty free operator Gebr. Heinemann to expand its reach throughout Asia.
At the time, Dick Smith chief executive Nick Abboud stated the move into airport locations was consistent with Dick Smith’s “strategy of achieving strong sales and profit growth through low capital intensity initiatives such as David Jones and Move”.
“We anticipate this initiative generating up to $50 million in sales in the first full year, at modest capital expenditure or setup costs,” he commented of the initiative.
Fairfax has today reported that, having received approaches from investors seeking to franchise the concept, Abboud is looking at options for taking Move overseas once store numbers have risen in Australia from seven to more than 30, including about 10 airport locations.
The Move concept, of which the female demographic is a clear focus, is a “fusion of fashion and on-the-go electronics”.
“I think Move could possibly go a lot further than 30 stores, but it may have to go international, and airports is an entry point to that,” Fairfax reported Abboud as stating.
At its annual general meeting last month, Dick Smith stated it is targeting store growth to 450 stores by the 2017 financial year, equating to around 20 new stores opening annually across Australia and New Zealand.
Chairman Phil Cave told shareholders the board believes “there is considerable scope for at least 450 stores in Australia and New Zealand”, signalling a clear growth strategy in coming years.
“We are pleased to have moved to a store opening phase, following a number of store closures in recent years,” he commented. “In 2014, we opened 21 Dick Smith stores in addition to David Jones and Move, with all stores profitable.”
Dick Smith has undergone significant changes in recent times following last year’s IPO, with Abboud confident about the retailer’s prospects.
“Personally I don’t go home at night stressed about the whole experience, I actually get excited that I’m involved in that experience, whether it’s Move or David Jones or online or Dick Smith or duty free,” Fairfax reported Abboud as stating.
“They’re things I know will put us way ahead of what everyone else is doing in the marketplace.”
In the first 15 weeks of the 2015 financial year (to 12 October 2014), Dick Smith reported sales growth of 10.1 per cent and like-for-like sales growth of 1.7 per cent.
Dick Smith has stated it anticipates high single-digit/low double-digit sales growth in the 2015 first half.
