Ferrier Hodgson and Inside Retail will recognise outstanding retail growth by Australian retailers in 2014, with the launch of the inaugural 2014 Retail Growth Awards.
The first of its kind award aims to recognise and celebrate Australian retailers based on profit and growth, setting it apart from almost all other retail awards in Australia which revolve around a host of other factors such as marketing, retail execution, and branding.
The awards are open to Australian businesses with a turnover of more than $20 million and EBITDA of $2 million.
To be eligible, entrants must derive 50 per cent of income from retail sales.
Launching the awards, James Stewart, partner at Ferrier Hodgson, said that despite the retail industry having had somewhat of a tough time in the past six to seven years, a lot of retailers in Australia are doing well and should be celebrated.
“This is an opportunity to celebrate retailers in the Australian market that have a good story to tell – one that probably doesn’t get told enough,” said Stewart.
“We’re trying to encourage both large public companies, but more importantly the private businesses that don’t get heard about, to get out there and tell your success story to demonstrate that good things are happening in the Australian retail market and great retail concepts can come from the Australian retail market.
“We think we could see some david and goliath stories. We don’t expect that large retailers will win every year, we think there’s a good opportunity for small to mid size retailers to tell a great story about their successful brands and be celebrated in a public arena,” he said.
All private companies entering the awards will receive a 12 month subscription to Inside Retail PREMIUM, valued at $495.
Private companies will also have the opportunity to win a consulting package from Azurium valued at $20,000 by submitting what they consider to be the key success drivers for retail growth in Australia in 100 words or less.
Winners of the Azurium prize can choose from three consulting packages, including customer analytics insights, a strategic planning workshop, or business model review.
Winners and rankings of the Ferrier Hodgson Retail Growth Awards will be revealed in Inside Retail’s 2015 annual Australian Retail Outlook publication, available in January 2015.
Said Stewart: “We’ve kept the criteria pretty simple. What we’re looking for is good growth stories in the the Australian market based on EBITDA performance over a three year period on a compounded growth basis”.
The awards are open to both private and public retailers, with entries closing November 15.
To download a submission form, visit www.ferrierhodgson.com/au/awards.
For more information about the Ferrier Hodgson Retail Growth Awards, contact Christos Kyriakides at awards@fh.com.au, or (03) 9604 5119.
