Aussie fight fashion houses

If an invading army launches an attack, he loves to usually have the element of surprise on his side to get what the role of the opponent's effective defense difficult. But when the intruder is an army of foreign retailers, the surprise is almost out of the question. Real estate, supply chain and marketing must all be implemented carefully in advance. There is no excuse for the well-established national actors to be caught unprepared.

However, despite all the loud warning before their arrival in the retail invaders arrive in Australia in the past two years have shown that the competition was with local fashion chains like shooting fish in a barrel. National retailers and department stores were in shock as Melbourne Football Club after a lightning in the first quarter. Their sales have stagnated or increased back as retailers like Zara and Topshop have accumulated results in some of its branches, which positively compare with the best in their international portfolios.

But according to a new study by retail analysts Crystal Wang and Thomas Kierath at Morgan Stanley, people begin circling their vehicles. The researchers found that prices for domestic fashion clothing chains are down and sets are extended as they valiantly tried to catch up with global retailers.

For example, in the key category of women's dresses, Morgan Stanley found that 19 of the 42 national retailers, he once reduced price over the last 12 months, compared to only six retailers who had applied. David Jones, Portman, Jay Jays and other chains have also significantly expanded its range of products in the category.

But it is enough to stem the tide, reverse the invasion and consumers defected back to the fold?

According to researchers at Morgan Stanley gap between domestic and foreign merchants on price and assortment is still gaping, despite the gains of the national team. And they look very vulnerable, the operator at the end of the value of the market where retailers such as Cotton On, Jay Jays, just jeans, Jeans West, Target and Myer do to a certain extent, their work.

This is not good news for the national chains, especially in view of a weakening of the Australian dollar and pressure on margins in the retail world powers such as H & M and Uniqlo on the Australian market soon give for the first time.

The carnage would have been worse if the newcomers had found it easier to acquire, relevant flagship locations in the best shopping centers and CBD Australia. The lack of real estate has slowed and retailers gave a little more room to adjust.

Not directed a major problem for national retailers in search of Morgan Stanley is consumer psychology. Even in a hypothetical world in which national actors, the gap in the global retailers in terms of price, selection, and other attributes are able to fill (no small feat), customers may be reluctant to go back to a way . For many, the legendary Australian retail names have definitely been branded as "relevant".

This is a question that unpleasantly large number of Heads of State and Government of Australian retailers have not yet been considered, let alone faced in a practical way. Perhaps the example of the store is once-proud suburban fish and chips concentrate their minds. If Asian immigration is happening and arrived exotic cuisine from India, China, Vietnam, Thailand and Japan in Australia, lost fish and chips shops their attractiveness and never recovered again.

Myer, Target, investment and cooperation Prime will be compared to shiver fish and chipperies. But their sales are dead in the water. Get a taste of the new kitchen is one thing, but finding the right recipe to bring back alienated customers and attract new ones can be very different.

Michael Baker is the director of the Baker Council and can be reached at michael@mbaker-retail.com and www.mbaker-retail.com.