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state of the nation 2021
18 months now and frankly it’s become the new normal. “The downside is that it’s being balanced by significant cost
inflation, notably around supply chain and freight.”
On that front, Andrea doesn’t believe there is any reason to
expect improvements to global supply chain disruption any time soon.
“It’s interesting when I hear different people say they think ‘another six months’ and whatnot – I don’t know what proof points they’re actually relying on for that.
“I don’t see any change, and there are no proof points of any change coming for a while yet.”
“If it’s about demand then how can anyone really predict what will ease off the demand apart from the obvious things around interest rates and inflation?
“Everything I’m hearing from global retailers, including Amazon, is that they are forecasting increased demand as far as they can see.”
However, here at home, differing regional Alert Levels and associated lockdowns over the last year have “caused real pain for individual businesses,” admits Andrea Scown, adding that it’s no secret that Auckland has “definitely done it the hardest.”
Having said that, overall, Mitre 10 NZ has “continued to see market share growth, with great customer feedback coming through, despite the challenges.”
Part of this growth will have been thanks to Mitre 10 expanding its online offering significantly in terms of both range and functionality, so it will have been galling that the website crashed during Cyber Awareness Week, particularly so for the Auckland stores still in lockdown.
Andreaadmitsitwas“painful”,theresultofoverloadingMitre 10’s complicated legacy system, not a hack attack but nonetheless requiring significant remediation.
The upside is that new overarching and in-store systems are coming soon.
Indeed 2022 will see the next big step in Mitre 10’s transformation program, which is the network-wide replacement of the co-op’s disparate legacy systems and technology, including new and simpler consumer- and trade-facing websites.
“The paradigm shift we’ve seen as online growth has exploded has done nothing if not underpin the importance of this programme,” says Andrea, who’s not afraid to add “I’m really glad we’re not like some businesses just starting now – our digital transformation is well progressed, and I’m delighted to be able to say that!”
So much for the digital world.
From a network development perspective, Mitre 10 NZ has been talking quite openly about the potential for 11 new stores on top of the current 84, the first of which will be Riviera Hardware Holdings’ new Mitre 10 MEGA in Silverdale which is expected to open in March 2022.
There are also what you might term expansions going on around the country, including a major new garden centre at the Mitre 10 MEGA in Mt Wellington which should be opening in the next few weeks.
There are also new cooperative members in Opotiki and Whakatane where the stores have changed hands and are now owned by former team members.
Another bricks & mortar type topic I have been hearing a bit about recently from mainly overseas is fitting retail into the urban context, in terms of rightsizing and product mix.
In this respect, it has been informative that, with the member looking to sell, Mitre 10 NZ recently acquired Mitre 10 Ponsonby.
“We are investigating new formats,” confirms Andrea Scown. “We are particularly looking at urban formats. So we brought that store back in just while we’re making some network plans around the inner city,” she says.
“It’s certainly not our intent to have company-owned stores. It was just a temporary move.”
Clear among these plans is that Auckland is the obvious place to start into urban Mitre 10s, there are already several sites under consideration and that the next steps will become clear “within the next year.”
With sustainability top of mind for many consumers, on top of Mitre 10 NZ programs like the recent pot recycling scheme, as with Bunnings above, there is more afoot here that is more fundamental to the cooperative.
Take for example the cooperative’s sustainable packaging guidelines which have been trialled and worked through with suppliers across several categories with a view to implementation in 2025.
Take also the co-op’s recent externally run network-wide carbon measurement audit, encompassing both buildings (including Support Centre) and vehicles.
Having established a baseline, the stated goal is to improve on that over time, with particularly new store builds like those in Wanaka andsoonSilverdaleleadingthecharge.
“Everything we do now in terms of builds will have that lens over it in terms of making the buildings more sustainable,” says Andrea Scown.
Asked for an outlook, Andrea is happy to proceed on the basis that Kiwis will continue investing in their nests, indoors and out, while new home building will continue to drive growth in Mitre 10’s trade business.
Still, it’s far from business as usual: “What a crazy year, right?” she exclaims.
“When I look back, I think the cooperative has shown resilience and real flexibility throughout the pandemic. And that gives me confidence.
“The pandemic has also meant that at Mitre 10 we are having to make decisions faster than what we’re used to.
“Probably the biggest worry I had two years ago was our ability to absorb the changes in the transformation programme.
“But then I look back at everything that people have just handled and actually turned to their advantage over this period and I think it shows we’re going to be pretty good actually with the ability to change and pivot to what we need to do.
“I think we’ve proven that to ourselves, I think all of New Zealand has proven that to themselves.”
Indeed, this capacity for change at Mitre 10 is Andrea Scown’s biggest single learning from the last year: “It’s that ability to keep the boulder rolling when you don’t have perfect information, but you just keep on going.
22 NZHJ | DECEMBER 2021/JANUARY 2022
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