Myer sinks to massive loss as shoppers tighten belts, RBA delivers rate hikes and fuel crisis drags on
Three rounds of interest rate rises from the Reserve Bank, coupled with a petrol crisis fuelled by the Middle East war and a warmer than average start to winter, has driven losses at Myer deeper into the red.
Three rounds of interest rate rises from the Reserve Bank, coupled with a petrol crisis fuelled by the Middle East war and a warmer than average start to winter, has pushed losses at Myer deeper into the red.
The department store chain on Wednesday reported an 11.3 per cent increase in total sales in the 12 months to July 25 of $4.1 billion.
That was driven by higher revenue from women’s fashion (up 4.7 per cent), homewares (up 5.6 per cent), kids (up 4.6 per cent) and concessions items (up 8.2 per cent) which offset weaker sales across beauty products.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Its Apparel Brands label Just Jeans lifted sales 6 per cent, but that was offset by lower sales in other brands, particularly Portmans where sales plunged more than 10 per cent.
Other brands in the stable — Jay Jays, Jacqui E and Dotti — are also struggling in the first eight weeks of the new financial year, with sales across Aparrel Brands already 6 per cent lower.
Group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation for the year rose 7.9 per cent to $413.5 million, hurt by a huge jump in the cost of doing business.
Underlying profit was down 2.9 per cent to $42.5m.
A one-off, non-cash, post-tax impairment of $279.6m related to goodwill, brand intangibles, and store impairment across the Myer Group pushed the full year loss from $204.4m the previous year to $276.5m.
Myer said it had experienced volatile trading on a month-to-month basis throughout the second half of the year, with ongoing cost-of-living pressures weighing heavily on consumer sentiment.
“These pressures included the inflationary effects of higher fuel prices arising from the Middle East conflict, three interest rate increases in CY26, slower household income growth, a weaker housing market and financial uncertainties for many households,” it said.
“Despite mixed trading month-to-month for Myer Group, including a strong recovery in May, cost-of-living impacts intensified in June and July, significantly constraining household budgets and consumer spending.
“This was further compounded by a warmer than average start to winter inmost of Australia’s major cities, impacting clothing sales.
“Myer Group sought to stimulate demand by increasing promotional activity and whilst value creation and integration synergies supported 2H26 performance, it was not sufficient to offset weak underlying consumer spending.”
Myer did not declare a final dividend.
The group also reported that one-time investor agitator Solomon Lew — the boss of Premier Investments which last year sold Apparel brand to Myer — will join the board as a non-executive director.
Executive chair Olivia Wirth said his deep retail expertise and position as the group’s largest shareholder would be important in helping to drive long-term value creation.
“Sol knows the retail sector inside and out. We are confident that the board and Myer Group will benefit greatly from his vast experience and expertise,” Ms Wirth said.
Originally published as Myer sinks to massive loss as shoppers tighten belts
