It currently has 84 stores for The Warehouse and a total of 219 across the group.<\/p>\n
The Warehouse Group chief executive Mark Stirton said the strategy was grounded in knowing its customers better, offering the right products and running the business with greater discipline.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe welcome around 1.7 million customer visits to our three iconic retail brands every week, and we have a national store and distribution network that is enviable. <\/p>\n
\u201cOver time the business lost sight of what customers wanted from us and as a result, has not performed to its potential,\u201d Stirton said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a credible and realistic pathway to achieving our target of $100m in operating profit within three to five years, which does not rely on any single initiative.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Warehouse Group chief executive Mark Stirton said growing The Warehouse was the group’s biggest opportunity.<\/p>\n
The group said three levers provided the pathway to its goal, including optimising its base, growing the performance of existing stores, and adding new stores.<\/p>\n
The first priority is to grow the group\u2019s top-line earnings, with a targeted annual growth rate (AGR) of about 2%. In the group\u2019s last full-year result, it reported an AGR of 0.4%.<\/p>\n
Supporting this is a targeted increase in gross margin by 150 basis points from 32.6% to 34.1%, driven by an improved mix of higher-margin categories, selling more products at full price and better sourcing from its suppliers.<\/p>\n
The other optimisation will be the group\u2019s cost of doing business (CODB), which is targeted to below 31% of sales.<\/p>\n
With those measures in place, the group expects stores to increase earnings by 10-15 basis points per annum.<\/p>\n
The group has planned capital expenditure of $40m-$60m annually, with 50% prioritised for new stores and core infrastructure.<\/p>\n
It opened a new Queen St Noel Leeming store in September and plans to open a P\u0101p\u0101moa store early 2027 with another in Mangawhai, set to open later in 2027.<\/p>\n
The investment will be released selectively and funded from operating cashflow rather than borrowing, with intent to invest when the business case stacks up.<\/p>\n
The group\u2019s board has also revised its dividend policy to target an annual ordinary dividend payout ratio of 50% to 70% of adjusted net profit after tax.<\/p>\n
It intends to consider resuming dividends for the 2027 financial year, although any dividend remains subject to the group\u2019s performance, financial position and board approval.<\/p>\n
The group said it would report on its progress against 10 measures every half to show its progress.<\/p>\n