History and Analysis of David Jones: A Successful Australian Retail Brand

This presentation provides a comprehensive overview of the history of David Jones, a successful Australian retail brand. It discusses the company's establishment, growth, and challenges faced. The presentation also includes an analysis of the retail industry in Australia and a SWOT analysis of David Jones. Additionally, it explores the company's successful business operations and suggests ways to improve its performance through strategic management.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
NAME OF THE STUDENT:
NAME OF THE UNIVERSITY:

HISTORY OF THE COMPANY
The company was established by a Welsh businessman named David Jones. In
consultation with another businessman named Charles Appleton, in London who
established Appleton stores.
David Jones moved to Melbourne and opened the first store in Sydney in partnership
with Appleton in the year 1835. The name of the store was Appleton and Jones.
However, after the end of the partnership in 1838, the stores were removed to
George Street.
However, though the new store survived the depression of the 1840’s, the business
totally declined in the late 1850’s.
 After David Jones retired from all the services there was a sharp decline of the
company.
However, after the death of the founder, his son Edward Lloyd Jones led the Company
and after him Edward Lloyd Jones aged 15 years took the responsibility of the
organization and journeyed to England to join the England office.

HISTORY OF THE COMPANY
After his return to his native country he took over the reins of the company after his
father’s death.
The first task he did was to convert the company into a public limited and then opened
different stores under the careful guidance of Charles Lloyd Jones.
 The time between 1940’s to the 1980’s the company experienced a sharp growth and
expanded its reach across Australia.
The company established different kinds of stores across Australia and slowly started
expanding overseas.
Its US venture however failed to produce results as the company failed to deliver the
results in the country.
However, the US venture of the organization which was undertaken by Adelaide
Steamship Company acquired a substantial interest in the company in the year 1980.
In the next few years, a complex business structure was followed in between the two
companies which saw each of them taking control of over half of their shares.
Presently the company has been taken over by Woolworths of South Africa.

ANALYSIS OF THE INDUSTRY
The consumer goods retailing subdivisions has been struggling with a tough retail
conditions for the last few years.
The retail industry in Australia continues to maintain its momentum, driven by
economic and social developments.
Key factors in the growth of retail industry are robust economic growth, rising
population and rising purchasing power.
 Retail industry in the Australia region will expand at a CAGR of 2% over 2013-18.
Growth of Retail industry in Australia in Asia Pacific is second lowest.
Australia is a very flexible market.
Sudden rise and sudden downfall in Retail sector is common in Australia.
The Overall size of Australia retail market is $122 USD in 2013.
During past year’s low interest rates have given a relief to retail sectors. Due to low
interest rates, purchasing power of customers was increased and thus the retail
industry which was decreasing has suddenly started growing.

PERFORMANCE IN COMPARISON TO
OTHER COMPETITORS
COMPARISON PERFORMANCE
 David Jones has grown itself as a commendable organization in Australia.
 It has been able to tackle fresh challenges from the departmental stores like that of
Myer, Kmart and JB Hi-Fi especially in the fashion business.
 Apart from this the company has also been able to make the most from its food
halls which have been an instant hit with the customers.
 Following the launch of its Bondi Junction, the management of David Jones plans
to open stand-alone stores in both Sydney and Melbourne to broaden its reach
beyond its flagship department stores.

SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTH OPPORTUNITIES
Strong Domestic presence in Australian
market
Variety of products
200 stores in Europe
New business opportunities
Leverage on Brand Name
WEAKNESSES THREATS
Low Brand Quality
Limited global presence
Limited Brand Loyalty
Presence of other high end stores both
domestically and Internationally

SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths- The main strength of the company lies in its strong domestic as
well as presence in the European markets. Its presence in France is one of
the greatest strengths as it is the epitome of European fashion. Offering a
large number of products to the customers is also one of the main
advantages of the business.
Weaknesses- The presence of a large number of products has led the
organization to compromise on the quality of the products and the limited
global presence of the organization is a major weakness of the brand.
Opportunities- There are lots of opportunities for the management of the
business to increase revenue for the organization. The organization can
enter into new businesses like pharmaceuticals. The leverage on brand
name is also one of the major opportunities for the business to spread its
global wings.
Threats- The absence of brand quality and the presence of stores like
Woolworths and Coles are a serious threat to the growth of the industry.

SUCCESFUL BUSINESS OPERATIONS
The branding of David Jones a black and white hounds tooth pattern is
one of the most recognized and identified corporate identities of
Australia.
The presence of the company across different brands and the large
scale offerings of the organization has helped it to become one of the
best Australian retail brand.
David Jones has for some decades used popular models and celebrities
for advertising its brands and has been successful in doing so.
The food hall experiment of the company has also been successful and
they are viewed as one of the most key part of the David Jones brand
that emphasizes luxury, quality as well as style.
Five different stores of the same kind have been opened till date. The
expansion of the company in Europe and New Zealand are cited as the
most successful ventures of the organization.

DIFFICULTIES FACED BY THE COMPANY
There are different kinds of difficulties that are recently being
faced by the organization.
First and foremost, the company has been trying to innovate
and implement new strategic initiatives.
Recently the owner of David Jones announced that they were
looking into writing down the value of the company they
bought for $2 billion in 2014.
The departmental stores has also shown a fall in the sales
since 2009.

WAYS TO IMPROVE THE PERFORMANCE OF THE
COMPANY
Some of the best ways to improve the performance of the business are as follows;
Integrating Online and Offline Activities- Almost all of the customers of David Jones
own a Smartphone. Therefore the management of the company must introduce new
applications for these customers to buy products easily by ordering online.
Improvement of the Merchandising- The improvement of merchandising activities, like
change in marketing and promotional activities can help to improve the merchandising
of the brand.
Segment fashion by age and style- David Jones arranges its stores by gender, brand and
price (lower floors generally mean cheaper). This is a symptom of the concession
model, or stores-within-stores. It is no longer enough to offer goods all in one place
because the internet does this very well online and Westfield does it even better in the
real world.
Add more unique products- The addition of more and more unique and different
products is the key to the success of the organization.

REFERENCES
David Jones. (2019). David Jones Online | Shop Fashion, Beauty, Home & More.
[online] Available at: https://www.davidjones.com/ [Accessed 7 Jan. 2019].
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