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Smiths City Group says it will open five more stores next year as part of a rebrand unveiled at its new flagship store at The Colombo Mall in Christchurch.
New owner Colin Neal bought the 102-year-old business in May after it went bankrupt, and has since closed eight stores at a loss and opened four new ones.
Neal said future expansion would focus on regions where stores would remove the word “city” from their name, rather than include the names of the cities and neighborhoods where they were located.
“We are not a big city. Our most successful stores are not the big cities, they are the regional heart of New Zealand.
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Joseph Johnson / Stuff
Smiths City’s new owner Colin Neal says the move to Auckland was a mistake, but that after having closed stores at a loss, the business is already profitable.
“We just see ourselves as locals within those cities; knowledgable and a bunch of good Kiwi bastards who speak frankly. “
The new store at The Colombo shopping center in Sydenham is just a few hundred meters from the former Smith City flagship store on Colombo St, and both outlets will remain open at least until the original store’s lease ends. .
Neal’s purchase of Smiths City by Polar Capital was a major change in direction for the businessman, who founded Big Chill Distributors, which he sold to Freightways.
It also has stakes in Moa beer and Mercer Stainless, as well as owning the health and beauty distributor Pricewise, which also has a store at The Colombo Mall.
Joseph Johnson / Stuff
Smiths City’s new Christchurch flagship store at The Colombo Mall will stock more New Zealand-made furniture.
Neal said Smiths City has been on his radar for a while, and that he initially intended to only buy a few shares, before deciding to buy the entire business.
“I had been looking at Smiths City for two or three years from a stock price point of view, and I like undervalued companies; I have studied Warren Buffett and they call me Colin Buffett. “
Sale negotiations took place on Zoom during the closing and Neal bought the business without being able to visit any of the stores.
He’s interested in stocking more New Zealand-made furniture and said Smiths had already discussed how it could cut costs so local manufacturers lower the price.
“One was not having representatives on the road, only supplying us, putting it in our warehouses, it removes the responsibility from the manufacturer, which is the cost.”
Smiths City CEO Tony Allison said Covid-19 meant that supply was a problem for some imported products.
Joseph Johnson / Stuff
Smiths City CEO Tony Allison says a change to the logo has “embedded a smile” in the name. The new look, which follows a change in ownership, comes after a torrid couple of years in which stores were closed and more than 100 employees were laid off.
“There is a lack of containers, border problems, for example, some of the upholstery is taking time to enter.”
But the pandemic meant that people were buying more because they were spending more time at home.
“They are replacing the lounge suite, replacing the bed and buying a new television, because you are in your nest and you need to be comfortable when you are not going abroad.
“The money doesn’t leave the country the same way, so they are spending it.”
Smiths was also trying to accommodate changing tastes and lifestyles as more people lived in apartments or downsized their homes.
“We have beds that you can put in a bag.
“The slogan we have now is: ‘We equip the kiwi houses.'”
Allison said there would also be a shift in focus. “We will not sell you something because we will make more money from it, we will sell you something because we know it is the right thing to do.”
The change in the store’s color scheme reflected that cultural shift, with more black and much less “screaming” yellow, he said.
