Naughty
and Nice Retailers - Zara, Uniqlo, and Topshop are being urged to reveal more
about their sources of supply. Advocacy group Oxfam has listed those companies
along with the Just Group, Best and Less, and ASOS of the U.K. on their
"naughty" list. Oxfam want all major players in clothing retail to
reveal where and how their goods are made so that mistreatment of employees in
developing countries can be exposed.
The
good news is that Oxfam's list of "nice" companies continues to
expand with Coles, Target, and K-Mart identified as "world leaders"
when it comes to sourcing transparency. Others on the "nice" list
include Cotton On Group, Pacific Brands (the owner of Berlei bras and Bonds
underwear), Specialty Fashion Group, Jeanswest, and
Forever New.
Australian
Suppliers to Feature In Aldi's China Push. - Australian goods have a favourable
reputation in China which might help explain why Australia achieved a top
rating in the huge multi-billion dollar Singles Day event conducted by Alibaba
recently.
That
connection hasn't been list on Aldi who will feature Australian suppliers as
they launch a push into China next year.
Ruslan
Kogan Welcomes Amazon Arrival - the pending arrival of online giant, Amazon, in
the Australian market concerns many
retailers but not the CEO of kogan.com. Ruslan said this week that
"a rising tide lifts all boats". He expects that the arrival of
Amazon will influence more profile brands to expand their online availability,
something that online players like Kogan could take advantage of.
K-Mart
Continues to Impress - in 2012 K-Mart's profit was $268m, by 2016 it had
reached $470m and the first quarter of 2017 has seen 8% store growth. K-Mart
continues to defy the experience of its competitors with key players like Big W
and Target showing losses in 2016.