Consumer spending
Booktopia axes 165 jobs as administrators field interest from 60 parties
Barely two dozen employees remain at the embattled book retailer whose administrators found the business didn’t have the funds to retain them.
- by Jessica Yun
Latest
Would you pay to smell like chloroform or cigarette butts?
Consumers are eschewing mainstream fragrances in favour of unique scents that tell a story.
- by Lauren Ironmonger
Early end-of-financial-year sales help lift retail spending
Retail turnover rose by 0.6 per cent in May following two sluggish months of consumer spending.
- by Rachel Clun and Shane Wright
Exclusive
Online shopping
‘A bit sleepy’: The Iconic’s new boss wants it to disrupt Australian retail again
Chief executive Jere Calmes hopes to cement the outlet as an essential part of the online infrastructure of fashion as consumers rein in spending.
- by Jessica Yun
Exclusive
Australian economy
Fuel and power costs stopping businesses from profit-boosting changes
The retail sector has been struggling for almost two years, as high inflation and interest rates hit the spending plans of consumers.
- by Shane Wright
Booktopia might be on the brink, but your local bookshop probably isn’t
As Australia’s largest online bookseller struggles to forge a viable business model, many independent booksellers have found ways to thrive.
- by Jessica Yun
‘A heartbreaking decision’: The news no fashion brand wants to share
In what some fashion veterans are calling the worst trading conditions in 25 years, more brands are closing amid falling spending and rampant discounting.
- by Melissa Singer
Local growers devastated as Woolworths swaps to Chinese, South African fruit
Growers were told in a meeting at SPC’s Shepparton office last month that orders of peaches for cans would be reduced by 40 per cent, and pears by 60 per cent.Â
- by Mary Ward
Economic growth ‘very weak’ but better days around the corner
The head of Treasury says while soft consumer spending will lead to subdued economic growth, household budgets will fare better in the second half of the year.
- by Shane Wright and Rachel Clun
Chinese variety retailer Miniso goes into administration for a second time
The Japan-inspired discount chain store has appointed administrators yet again as consumers close their wallets.
- by Jessica Yun
The northern beaches brothers who won from Woolies’ $590m bet on pets
Woolworths’ acquisition of a major stake in PETstock has yielded a third beneficiary, PetO, which has its own ambitions of being a major player in the pet store landscape.
- by Jessica Yun