Country Road Group

So that's going to be a relief that we only have to pop down the road to Morley.

But, yeah, I mean, Country Road and Witchery for me, but also JB Hi-Fi.

Really excited about that.

It's kind of long overdue that we need these quality retailers in Morley.

DJs are looking at a massive $95 million loss.

And Country Road and Witchery and Mimco are all pulling the pin on 100 David Jones shop fronts as the historic department store battles this $95.5 million loss.

Australian fashion labels have long been a very important part of David Jones' operation.

Now, I don't pretend to know how it works, but I assume these fashion labels pay a form of rent to be under the roof, the umbrella of David Jones.

Department stores face brand exodus and evolving concession models.

The retail landscape is seeing major shifts as Country Road Group plans to remove nearly 100 concessions, including Witchery and Mimco, from David Jones.

This follows similar pullbacks from luxury labels like Dior, Gucci, and Chanel.

The move highlights challenges for traditional department stores, particularly when brands have strong direct-to-consumer channels and their own standalone stores.

Country Road Group's own financial results, with a 0.2% adjusted EBIT margin on over $1 billion revenue in FY26, suggest internal pressures to re-evaluate physical distribution strategies.

This trend underscores the need for department stores to offer compelling reasons for customers to visit and for brands to justify every physical touchpoint, especially as online options proliferate.

Online-first brands accelerate physical retail expansion.

They've got leases and high staff costs that online retailers don't have.

But this week we saw that Country Road Group was cutting its concessions by about 100 of its 283 concessions yesterday.

Right.

Mm-hmm.

We

know that David Jones for a decade was owned by Woolworths of South Africa and that they exited in 2022, but they kept the Country Road Group.

So that's the David Jones story.

Country Road has had its own difficulties.

They're among the brands pulling dozens of shops from David Jones stores.

The Country Road Group currently operates 283 of these spaces across the network, but close to 100 are set to vanish from February.

The company says it's focusing on its own network of stores.

It comes after a number of luxury brands pulled back from DJs.

And you mentioned some of the brands, some of the key brands that you're working with.

New Balance, as you mentioned, Country Road Group, RM Williams.

They're getting price control.

They're getting access to huge fashion and lifestyle audiences and delivery speed.

And at the age of 23, I had my first child, had my daughter Ava.

And then at the age of 25, I had my second child and actively working in retails at Country Road Group during that period.

Okay.

and learnt so much during that time.