Josh McDonnell spoke to Peter Jackson marketing manager Nick Jackson around the brands plans for growth and development in 2017.
Where do you see the broader retail market heading in 2017: what are the opportunities and what are the challenges?
I see market conditions staying relatively strong for 2017. Macro conditions that really affect confidence should stay or improve to our favour (employment, economic drivers, interest rates) so I see positive conditions ahead for us.
I think there will be a continued push to speciality fashion with the bigger boxes and department stores needing to re-look at their models, yet that is nothing new. New opportunities for us are over in the west, and our biggest challenge is the same as many other businesses which is to attract and harvest the best industry talent.
What is the biggest growing area of your business?
We really seek to grow and improve all areas of our business on a constant basis, whether it be it distribution or our take on loyalty. However, I really see customised email marketing as a key area of focus for 2017. To be able to predict what customer’s want and then respond in the most relevant, timely manner possible is very exciting to me.
How did this area perform in 2016 and what are your projections for 2017?
Talking specifically about our store growth, we added 16 stores to our network in 2016 from 33 at the start of the year. The past three years have been the most significant growth period for the business with our first national store opened in 2013 and 37 stores opened around the country since then. Now we are at 51, so I’m really looking forward to a quieter 2017 with around 10 stores planned.
Will you be opening or refurbishing any stores in 2017? If so, how many and where?
In addition to the comments made above, we think our timing is right to head over to the west, and potentially the ditch, yet we will wait and see what opportunities present here.
Will you be launching any major initiatives in 2017?
We are looking at carving off some of our own retail space yet you will have to watch this space!