Jo Horgan is a talker. In her British accent, with vowels that remain unflattened despite living in Australia for almost four decades, Horgan talks and talks. Three times over the course of our conversation, politely inquiring members of her inner circle try to wrap us – her – up.
The first time, she waves them away, equally polite. The second, she invites them to sit. By the third time it’s clear to everyone that she has run out of excuses. “Right. I’m being cheeky now.”
By turns breathlessly effusive and pensively introspective, Horgan speaks with speed and obvious delight and then, shifting gears, she talks slowly and deliberately, selecting each word as if from a shelf in front of her. And yet she speaks. And she speaks. Because Jo Horgan has quite a lot to say.
It’s early March and about 400 people have filled the Great Hall of the NGV for a lunch to mark International Women’s Day. There are established philanthropists such as Krystyna Campbell-Pretty and Fiona Myer, and emerging members of Melbourne’s creative scene, such as cook Julia Busuttil Nishimura and jeweller Sarah Munro along with Oroton designer Sophie Holt. They are here for Horgan, who is announcing a five-year partnership that will, annually, sponsor a female architect or designer to create a large-scale piece of work for the gallery.
The commissioning of these five major works will, Horgan hopes, go some way to correcting the gender imbalance in the world of art and design. “Why did we turn our mind to design? Because of the gender disparity,” she says. “The statistics are stacked against female architects as they are against female artists broadly. Of the top 100 architecture firms in the world, just three are run by women.”
The Mecca x NGV Women in Design Commission is not Horgan’s first philanthropic venture, nor is it her first experience funding the creative arts. But this commission – worth a seven-figure sum over five years – represents a new, deeper commitment to philanthropy for the retailer and beauty entrepreneur.
She built her empire on the idea that great customer service delivered in sumptuous spaces filled with luxurious products can make women feel not just more beautiful but also more valued, more confident. Now that she has achieved that – and here, one must set all cynicism aside – Horgan has a new goal. Now, she wants to make the world more beautiful.
The Mecca magic
Joanna Elizabeth Horgan launched her first Mecca store on Toorak Road in South Yarra in 1997, 25 years ago. She was banking on the idea that beauty products were better sold by staff who were knowledgeable across various brands, instead of being incentivised to prioritise one brand over another the way assistants at concessions inside department stores were. A former L’Oreal marketing executive – via degrees in English literature, Latin and communications – Horgan saw a gap in the market. The bet paid off.
3 May, 2022
Vittoria rejects private equity overtures as sales rebound
Australia’s largest family-owned coffee company, Vittoria, has received buyout overtures from private equity groups and other large players as revenues rebound after a punishing two years in which it lost 20 per cent of its customer base.
But co-owner and chief executive Les Schirato said while revenues were rising strongly as more people returned to cafes and restaurants, the price of coffee beans had doubled and was putting a dent in profitability.
“We’ll have one of our worst years in terms of profits,” he said.
But revenues are returning strongly. Vittoria is on course to generate about $290 million in sales for 2021-22 and Mr Schirato said in the week leading up to Easter sales had roared back to pre-pandemic levels. “It’s been a monstrous rebound”.
Coffee bean prices are up 100 per cent, but Vittoria had absorbed a large part of that rise, and to date had only passed through about 7 to 8 per cent. But the pressure is building. “You have to ride the highs and lows,” he said.
Cafe owners have been through a tough time and are grappling with sharp rises in dairy prices and severe labour shortages.
“The cafes have been through hell,” he said. Mr Schirato said public annoyance at the rising price of a cup of coffee should be put in perspective as many cafes had only lifted prices by 20¢ to 30¢.
But inflation is on the march and is set to keep going.
“Inflation is certainly rising dramatically,” he said. Interest rates would rise too. Mr Schirato recalled the 1980s when his bank overdraft rate was 22 per cent and he was paying off a home loan with a mortgage rate of 18 per cent. He said many in the industry had not been through a period of sharply rising inflation.
Vittoria, which was established in 1958, had been winning extra customers because it is Australian-owned in an industry where there has been a string of buyouts by international conglomerates.
Mr Schirato, who owns the company with his wife, Luisa, said coffee drinkers increasingly want to know who owns a particular brand.
Australasian brand Allpress was bought by Japanese giant Asahi Beverages last year. Asahi owns the Carlton & United Breweries business, which makes beers including Victoria Bitter, Crown Lager and Carlton Draught.
Campos Coffee is owned by the publicly listed Jacob Douwe Egberts of the Netherlands after an acquisition last year, while Toby’s Estate Coffee changed hands in February in a $US158 million ($220 million) acquisition of the Suntory Coffee Australia business which included other businesses such as Atomic.
Mr Schirato said Vittoria knocked back a buyout offer from soft drinks group Coca-Cola Amatil more than a decade and a half ago. He said the overtures and preliminary buyout proposals had been coming regularly in the past two years. “We’re always getting private equity people wanting to come and talk to me,” he said. The answer is a polite no. Multi-national buyers have also been consistently knocking on his door.
Vittoria coffee is used in about 2 million cups of coffee a day. About 95 per cent of its sales are in Australia, with exports going to New Zealand, Asia and the United States. Ten years ago it was producing enough coffee for 1.2 million cups a day.
Vittoria, which was established in 1958, employs 200 people.
Mr Schirato said Vittoria was the No.1 brand in the supermarket channel, which had been a godsend in the past two years as an offsetting factor against lockdowns which seriously hurt the hospitality trade and caused about 20 per cent of its cafe customers to temporarily shut.
27 Apr, 2022
Food, grocery price hikes to follow as costs jump nearly 700 per cent
The nation’s major food and grocery manufacturers say they are facing increases in costs of up to 700 per cent since the pandemic began and have warned some of that will flow through to the price shoppers pay at the checkout.
The cost of implementing Covid safety requirements at factories, sourcing ingredients, the global shortage of wooden pallets used to ship finished goods and skyrocketing freight costs are all playing into food inflation across the supermarket aisle.
It comes at a time when inflation is surging across Australia, and in many countries overseas, as the cost of everyday items that typically fill a shopping basket rises and squeezes household budgets.
Australian Food and Grocery Council chief executive Tanya Barden said food and grocery manufacturers were facing rising cost pressures and many had absorbed these their own businesses.
However, these costs would eventually have to be passed on.
“Over the past decade manufacturers have already been dealing with a situation where wholesale prices – the prices they receive for their goods – have risen by less than the cost of their inputs. There has been a lot of absorbing of costs by manufacturers before the impact of the pandemic,” Ms Barden said.
Ms Barden told The Australian on Monday that many key inputs for her members had already increased by 50 per cent before the pandemic took hold but that wholesale selling prices had only lifted by 25 per cent.
“It has now gotten to a point where the level of costs coming through now are just astronomical and businesses really are not able to contain that themselves anymore and are in negotiations with retailers to pass some of that through.”
Ms Barden, who represents the $133bn food and grocery industry, said some of these input costs had lifted as much as 700 per cent in recent years, led by surges in shipping and freight prices, the cost of warehouse space, a sustained shortage of transport pallets and keeping workplaces Covid-safe.
“Over the past couple of years, the price of inputs for making and distributing goods has risen. The cost of shipping ingredients and finished goods to Australia has risen by 500 to 700 per cent.
“There have also been significant costs to business as a result of Covid-safety measures, domestic freight cost increases caused by weather disruptions, shortages of pallets and rises in the cost of packaging.
“Adding to this unprecedented Covid disruption, manufacturers are facing increases in global commodity prices as a result of the situation in Ukraine and they are now seeing increases in labour costs.”
The warning from the AFGC comes as the pick up in food inflation accelerated through the March quarter, according to investment bank UBS.
Latest research from UBS reports that food inflation has been most stark at Woolworths where March quarter prices rose 4.3 per cent, a large leap from 1.4 per cent in the previous quarter.
At Coles, the impact was more muted, but inflation is up for the period, hitting 3.2 per cent against 1 per cent in the second quarter.
In his latest Australian supermarkets survey, UBS analyst Shaun Cousins said inflation has accelerated in the third quarter to place further pressure not only on consumers as they stretch household budgets, but also potentially the supermarket chains as they seek to protect profit margins and sales from higher supplier prices.
Earlier this year, Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci warned that inflation in food and groceries was “alive and real”.
27 Apr, 2022
Endeavour Group sales stable despite impact from floods, Covid
Covid-cautious consumers and the devastating flooding in NSW and Queensland tempered the trading results of Endeavour Group in its third quarter, to April 3.
Sales of $2.728 billion across the company’s retail and hotel business divisions were down by 2.1 per cent year on year, but after adjustment to reflect the impact of Easter’s timing on figures, trading was almost even, down by just 0.3 per cent. Retail division sales were down 3 per cent to $2.323 billion, with the hotel division turning over $405 million, up 3.8 per cent.
Group MD and CEO Steve Donohue, said the business traded well given the impact of weather and Covid-19.
“Hotels trading improved as Covid-19-related restrictions eased, and retail sales were slightly lower than the equivalent period last year,” he said.
Consumer hesitancy about gathering in public led to a reduction in on-premise patronage while isolation rules for people with Covid, or potentially exposed to positive cases, created staffing challenges in both business divisions.
Endeavour Group estimates the severe flooding cost it around $9 million in damages and even now several impacted premises have yet to resume trading.
“The flood events caused extensive damage to a small number of our stores and hotels in the quarter. Our Dan Murphy’s Lismore store was submerged in the flooding in the first week of March. In addition, 10 of our BWS stores as well as the Breakfast Creek Hotel (Brisbane) and Westower Tavern (Ballina) were significantly impacted.”
The company is continuing to work with its insurers over compensation for clean up costs and asset write-offs, as well as an estimate of lost profits when stores and hotels were not able to operate.
Meanwhile, team members from multiple sites have been personally impacted by the severe flooding. “We are offering them additional support including financial assistance for property damage, providing vouchers for food and offering accommodation for displaced team members and their families at our hotels,” said Donohue.
The company and its customers have raised more than $800,000 to help communities impacted by the floods via charities including donation platform Givit.org.au and Red Cross.
During the quarter, one new Dan Murphy’s store opened taking that network to 258, while five BWS stores opened and four closed leaving 1411 at the quarter’s end.
27 Apr, 2022
Coopers unveils $50m expansion plan, taps into whisky and tourists
Coopers Brewery plans to invest $50 million in expanding its Regency Park site in Adelaide, including the construction of a new visitor centre, microbrewery, and whisky distillery.
The brewery said its expansion embodies its past, present, and future with tourists front of mind.
A new 3200-litre microbrewery will be installed to allow the brewing team to develop more craft-style beers to supplement its current portfolio. Adjacent to the microbrewery will be a whisky distillery comprising a 9600-litre wash still and a 5500-litre spirit still.
According to the company, ‘Wash’ for the wash still will be supplied by its microbrewery, with the initial objective of producing 200,000 bottles per year. However, consumers will need to wait some years before they can sample the finished product.
“We have been thinking about malt whisky for some time as we see it as a natural extension to our on-site maltings and our experience in brewing and fermentation,” said Dr Tim Cooper, MD at Coopers.
The brewery’s label rondel inspires the curved design of the new two-storey development, and the curved structures encompass a sloping amphitheatre that will showcase the brewery grounds and maltings.
A tree-lined promenade will extend from a new entry from Regency Road to bring visitors to the new facility, which will be surrounded by natural landscaping. A window-lined bridge will link the new development to the existing brewery building and feature a 300sqm interactive history display.
Aside from the microbrewery, the expansion will include:
A whisky distillery.
An underground stillage for whisky maturation.
A dedicated tasting room.
A restaurant and bar.
Outdoor plaza dining.
“Although we’ve been running brewery tours since 2006, this extensive development will augment and expand the guest experience, creating a lasting impression for new visitors and an ongoing connection for our loyal consumers with a new tour and tasting experiences,” Cooper added.
Construction is expected to begin around mid this year, pending local council approval.
27 Apr, 2022
Forever New will have 80% conscious garments by the end of this year
In celebration of Earth Day today, Forever New has unveiled a new campaign showcasing its progress on its sustainability goals.
The retailer unveiled its sustainability vision last year, driven by five key pillars: Responsible Fibres, Environment, Ethical Supply, Community and Diversity and Inclusion.
Progress has already been made on key goals; with Forever New stating it will achieve the below by the end of 2022:
80% of garments will be conscious - garments are considered conscious if it contains at least 30% responsible fibres or produced with responsible processes. Forever New defines a responsible fibre or process as one that has a lower environmental impact than the traditional option.
100% of faux leather will be vegan
50% of polyester items will be recycled
100% sustainable cotton will be implemented
Forever New MD Carolyn Mackenzie said the business is excited to make positive changes.
"It’s more important than ever that we see the fashion industry make responsible changes to ensure our planet is protected.
"Forever New is committed to becoming a champion of change in the industry, inspiring conscious shopping choices.
"I am proud of Forever New Conscious and what we will achieve not only in 2022 but in the years to follow," she said.
14 Apr, 2022
Pharma giant Pfizer makes $100m bid for Brisbane start-up
This marks a premium of 27.8 per cent on the company’s closing price last Friday, and a near 40 per cent premium on ResApp’s three-month volume-weighted average price. Shares in the business rocketed up 22 per cent following the news.
Tony Keating, ResApp’s chief executive, told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald Pfizer had approached the company’s board with an offer, with the multinational keen to use ResApp’s technology to further build out its capabilities in digital health.
“Seeing how quickly they were able to make the [COVID-19] vaccine and prove its effectiveness is really impressive, so if they can apply that into digital health, that’s a massive win for digital health,” he said.
“To have someone like Pfizer, which is very thorough in what it does, for them to propose to acquire ResApp just goes to show the confidence in our company and our team.”
ResApp’s main product is a smartphone-based diagnostics program that uses machine learning algorithms to diagnose and measure the severity of respiratory conditions such as pneumonia and asthma by recording a patient’s cough.
The company is also working on expanding its diagnostics tech to instantly screen for COVID-19, an area Keating says will be the main focus of a new research and development licensing agreement between ResApp and Pfizer which will go ahead even if shareholders do not approve the acquisition in mid-June.
ResApp will be paid $3 million upfront for the licensing deal and a potential $1 million more in milestone payments. Last month it told investors initial trials of the COVID-19 diagnostic tool had successfully detected the virus in 92 per cent of cases.
“This proposed acquisition and research collaboration add to our growing digital capabilities and bolster our efforts to pave a new era for digital health,” Lidia Fonseca, Pfizer’s chief digital and technology officer said in a statement.
ResApp’s board has unanimously recommended that shareholders back the scheme, which will require investor approval and ticks from an independent expert and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
However, some shareholders may be less than pleased with the 11.5 cent takeover price, with many taking to social media to say the offer was too cheap, given ResApp’s historical price of around 50 cents per share in 2016.
14 Apr, 2022
‘For more affluent consumers’: Coles-brand groceries to hit shelves in Singapore
Over 100 Coles-label products will be available on the shelves of Singapore’s biggest supermarket chain following a multimillion-dollar deal brokered by the federal government’s trade agency to boost food exports.
Under the newly inked ‘alliance agreement’, Singaporean shoppers will be able to find up to 140 Coles products in a dedicated section at any of NTUC FairPrice’s 390 stores across the Asian country from Thursday.
The products include Coles’ Ultimate Biscuits, Urban Coffee, its Soup range, and a selection of its Wellness Road products. Wellness Road is a healthy food range owned by Coles.
NTUC FairPrice is the dominant supermarket in Singapore, with 60 per cent of market share. By contrast, Coles holds 28 per cent of Australia’s market share, behind Woolworths at 37 per cent.
FairPrice Group chief procurement officer Ah Yiam Tng, who flew to Melbourne last week to sign the alliance agreement, said Australian products were popular among Singaporeans due to their reputation for being clean and high-quality.
“One thing about Singaporean consumers is they look at the country of origin, where it’s from, where it’s being produced and so forth,” Mr Tng told the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
NTUC FairPrice has its own collection of ‘own-brand’ products (some of which are produced by Australian farmers, such as its cheese, butter, breakfast cereal and infant formula).
“Our own brand is actually here to cater to the masses. Coles’ products will be here to compliment our assortment for more affluent consumers,” he said.
“Consumers in Singapore always perceive Australian products [to be] of better quality.”
Mr Tng’s favourite Coles product is the ginger cookies. “I finished one pack in one go with a cup of coffee.”
While the exact terms of the deal cannot be disclosed, sources say the first shipment of products comes to nearly $1 million. NTUC FairPrice intends to make monthly orders that will include fresh produce, meat and new products in future shipments.
NTUC FairPrice has held long-standing relationships with a number of Australian producers and already stocks Carman’s muesli bars, Red Rock Deli chips, and Weis ice cream.
Coles has been exporting Australian food to more than 30 countries around the world for more than two decades, with a focus on Asia. The export deal with NTUC FairPrice represents the first time it has exported to Singapore. About 30 per cent of the chain’s sales in Australia come from private label products.
“We are delighted to launch a number of these products for sale at FairPrice in Singapore to showcase their amazing quality and to continue to drive growth in our Own Brand business globally,” said a Coles spokesperson.
The deal was brokered by Austrade, the federal government’s trade and investment promotion agency, in efforts to help businesses find new export markets outside of China as part of the Agri-Business Expansion Initiative.
Singapore is Australia’s seventh-largest export market, according to figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. In the last financial year, Australian exports to Singapore grew more than 13 per cent despite supply chain hiccups.
“Many of Australia’s agricultural, aquaculture and food and beverage products adorn the shelves of Singapore supermarkets, take pride of place in home pantries, and are featured on the menus of high-end restaurants and street hawkers alike,” said an Austrade spokesperson.
“Austrade was proud to assist the Coles-FairPrice deal.”
14 Apr, 2022
Real Pet Food Company takes over pet supplement startup
Sydney-headquartered Real Pet Food Company has bought a majority stake in pet supplements start-up People for Pets for an undisclosed sum.
Founded last year by former executives from Blackmores and Procter & Gamble, People for Pets has developed a range of Australian-made, plant-based, medicinal water treats under the brand Nectar of the Dogs. The product was formulated with the input of veterinary surgeons and naturopaths and contains organic and ‘human-grade’ ingredients.
The Real Pet Food Company CEO David Grant says has invested alongside one of the founders, Gabriel Perera, who will remain an employee of the business.
“The partnership fits squarely within RPF’s strategic objectives and our future growth ambitions in Australia and key global markets. We look forward to expanding into the pet supplement space.”
Perera said the partnership will allow the combining of “the entrepreneurial style and natural animal health expertise that has made us successful to date,” with Real Pet Food Company’s “experience, resources, capabilities and international reach as a values-led, Australian global pet care leader”.
The Real Pet Food Company was founded in 1994 by Tony and Christina Quinn who opened a small chilled dog roll facility in Burleigh, Queensland under the name VIP Petfoods. The business was bought by Quadrant Private Equity in 2015 which initiated the name change and acquired seven more pet food-related businesses over the subsequent two years: Nature’s Gift, Tucker Time, Dr B’s Barf, Billy + Margot, Ivory Coat, CME Factory at Inverell and Jimbo’s in New Zealand.
The company was sold to a multinational investment group in 2017 and has now grown to include nine factories internationally. It sells in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US.
Liquor retailer Dan Murphy’s is set to open a bar in Melbourne where patrons will be served only zero-alcohol drinks.
The pop-up bar will open next week in Melbourne’s Hampton suburb, featuring a menu of alcohol-free beers and wines starting from $5. The bar will host a free tasting session in partnership with local producers and a resident mixologist will create bespoke cocktails including negronis and mojitos.
“The aim of our Zero% bar is to create a destination where customers can discover the great quality and variety of the new wave of non-alcoholic drinks,” said Alex Freudmann, Dan Murphy’s MD.
He says Zoomers and millennials are driving the growth in the non-alcoholic drinks category. During the past two years, Dan Murphy’s sales of zero-alcohol drinks has doubled.
Independent research commissioned by DrinkWise found this trend of consumption is largely led by younger Australians.
“Australians aged 18-44 years, are twice as likely to consume zero- and low-strength alcohol consumption than those over 45 years. The research indicated that zero and lower alcohol alternatives could assist the 43 per cent of the drinkers surveyed who signalled they wanted to cut down their consumption,” said DrinkWise CEO Simon Strahan.
The Zero% bar pop up is situated within the Hampton Hill precinct and will operate seven days a week until the end of June.
