Message from the CEO: 22 January 2016

News this week of Woolworths’ decision to abandon its failing Masters chain has come as no surprise to the...

News this week of Woolworths’ decision to abandon its failing Masters chain has come as no surprise to the retail and business community, after widely-publicised losses. Post-Christmas is a time that traditionally sees retailers assessing their performance, with similar announcements having occurred in January in previous years. While we now...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 11th December 2015

The Federal Government this week released its innovation package which it hopes will spark an “ideas boom” across Australia....

The Federal Government this week released its innovation package which it hopes will spark an “ideas boom” across Australia. And while most commentary has tended to focus on high-tech industries and emerging technologies, it’s pleasing that the Government realises that ideas and innovation must also be fostered across traditional...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 4th December 2015

As a business owner or manager, you deal on a daily basis with a wide range of expenses –...

As a business owner or manager, you deal on a daily basis with a wide range of expenses – some large and some small, but each one impacting on your bottom line.  And, no doubt you often stop to reflect on the worth of each overhead to your ultimate...

Read More

The NRA succeeds in its bid for one off trading on 28 December in regional Queensland

Because Boxing Day falls on a Saturday this year, an extra public holiday was gazetted by the Queensland Government...

Because Boxing Day falls on a Saturday this year, an extra public holiday was gazetted by the Queensland Government on Monday 28 December. For major retailers in regional areas of Queensland, this meant that they could not open their doors for four consecutive days over the Christmas Period –...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 27th November 2015

Aussies are spending more than ever before but visiting stores less, according to a snapshot of the country’s retail...

Aussies are spending more than ever before but visiting stores less, according to a snapshot of the country’s retail sector released this week.  The annual Roy Morgan State of the Nation report this year featured a special focus on retail.  It found spending on commodities topped $100 billion for...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 20th November 2015

With only five weeks to go until Christmas, we’re well into the swing of the festive season. Last week, we...

With only five weeks to go until Christmas, we’re well into the swing of the festive season. Last week, we welcomed the New South Wales Government’s landmark decision to allow retailers across New South Wales to open their doors on one of the biggest trading days of the year –...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 13th November 2015

We are fast approaching one of the busiest and most rewarding times of the year. This week, we’ve seen a...

We are fast approaching one of the busiest and most rewarding times of the year. This week, we’ve seen a landmark law passed in New South Wales, with the NSW Government allowing regional businesses to open their doors on Boxing Day, just in time for this year’s Christmas season. The NRA...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 6th November 2015

It’s just seven weeks until Christmas, and no doubt you are already well and truly gearing up for what...

It’s just seven weeks until Christmas, and no doubt you are already well and truly gearing up for what I hope will be a very prosperous time of the year. Yesterday, I released to the media the economic forecasts done by the NRA’s in-house research team, looking at the...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 30th October 2015

This week I hosted follow up discussions with the office of the new Treasurer Scott Morrison. We discussed a...

This week I hosted follow up discussions with the office of the new Treasurer Scott Morrison. We discussed a number of topics including the implementation timeline for scrapping the GST Low Value Threshold, the need for further tax reform, and the Financial Systems Inquiry. Regarding the costs of credit card...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 23rd October 2015

On Monday this week the Federal Government released its response to the Financial System Inquiry.  Of most interest for...

On Monday this week the Federal Government released its response to the Financial System Inquiry.  Of most interest for retailers was a commitment to prohibit merchants from levying credit card surcharges “that are greater than the cost to them of accepting payment by card”. A delegation from the NRA met...

Read More

Preparing for the Christmas Period – Top 5 Tips

In a shock move, banking giant Westpac recently lifted their mortgage rates. The effect on retail sales at this...

In a shock move, banking giant Westpac recently lifted their mortgage rates. The effect on retail sales at this stage is unknown as it is still unclear whether other big banks will follow suit. The impact on consumers will also depend on what the Reserve Bank of Australia will do...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 16th October 2015

Analysts were saying that the next move in interest rates would be upwards and we saw evidence of that...

Analysts were saying that the next move in interest rates would be upwards and we saw evidence of that this week – not from the Reserve Bank, but from Westpac, which announced a 0.2 per cent increase in its variable rate mortgage. It’s not the first bank to nudge...

Read More