David Jones' first-half sales slip on adjusted calendar

By

Benjamin Fitzgerald

Published
Jan 16, 2017

South African parent company Woolworths Holdings said its Australian department store David Jones recorded a first-half sales slip  with Boxing Day landing in the second half of its current financial year.

The retail group said overall sales growth fell by 2.7%, while the department store lifted adjusted first half sales 4%. The company said the termination of its Dick Smith concessions had impacted growth.

However, company sales were up when taking the aforementioned one-off factors out of the equation. David Jones has changed its retail strategy of late. The metropolitan chain looks to reach out to city-based fashion and beauty shoppers with a chain of smaller stores scheduled to open this year, following the opening of its first mini-sized ‘boutique’ in Sydney in November last year.

​The smaller format store is targeting affluent city workers and will be followed by a Brisbane opening early in 2017 with more major city areas believed to be on the retailer’s watchlist.

Woolworths Holdings currently operates brands David Jones, Politix and Country Road. Having removed a 1.8 per cent sales bump from the acquisition of the Politix fashion brand, and the Boxing Day effect, adjusted sales at Country Road dropped 0.9 per cent over the same period, said Woolworths.

Operated by Solomon Lew, Woolworths purchased Politix in October 2016, as part of a strategy to build a strong and diversified brand portfolio across the southern hemisphere.