WHS - Warehouse Group

[Basil]

The staff seemed a bit friendlier when i visited just before Christmas so I suppose that's a start but it could just be a time of year thing with people maybe generally a bit happier about life around Christmas time.  Very long journey ahead to try and turn this ship around I reckon.

[winner (n)]

The staff seemed a bit friendlier when i visited just before Christmas so I suppose that's a start but it could just be a time of year thing with people maybe generally a bit happier about life around Christmas time.  Very long journey ahead to try and turn this ship around I reckon.

Jeez, the turn around plan is working

Mark quoted in BusinessDesk today

You will start to see more fun and energy on the floor, with managers given more licence to do what they feel works for their communities, as well as modernising and upgrading our spaces to surprise and delight our customers." 

[Basil]

Nick and Joan have gone, arguably the two most useless executives that destroyed vast amounts of shareholder value, Nick at least $120m with his flawed business strategies and Joan giving Jacinda back $60m of Covid subsidies the company desperately needed because Cindy told her off.

With them gone the company at least has a chance and could put in a "dark horse" performance but competition keeps increasing and there's vast amounts of obsolete dated stock, bloated head office costs and my sense is some branches near to competition like K Mart are probably losing money.

Big ship, small rudders, how did that work out for the Titanic...and what does KW say about buying in a downtrend...

For those determined to have a punt, just follow the chart, there's no fundamentals so it's all TA you're relying on so it makes sense to only punt when the chart starts to look more encouraging.

[winner (n)]

basil ...they only need to improve GM% by a few %age points and save a few million in costs and hey presto profits back $80m/$100m

A 'dark horse' it is and TA should look better from here so a good punt I reckon

[Basil]

Agree, that's the bait on the hook, billions in turnover so theoretically if you tweak this and that and slash head office costs they should come right....BUT, how's that been working for them so far...

Maybe a determined bean counter with a few clues on marketing is exactly what the company needs as the new CEO though ?  They really do need to go through their costs on a line by line basis with a fine tooth comb and skilled bean counters are usually good at that.  What's his track record been like in the past mate ?

[Buzz]

basil ...they only need to improve GM% by a few %age points and save a few million in costs and hey presto profits back $80m/$100m

A 'dark horse' it is and TA should look better from here so a good punt I reckon

There's no indication from TA that it "should look better from here", in fact the TA looks awful and along with the terrible FA and sustained poor business performance, this isn't a punt now, it's an unashamed gamble. Un-investable on any basis imo. https://invst.ly/1eaga1

Apparently WHS IPO'd in Nov 1994 at $2.50 

[Basil]

Agree Buzz.  You'd need to see a break up through the 30 day MA, currently 76 cents (as an absolute minimum), to consider the TA was showing a glimmer of hope.  A break above 80 cps on proper volume, (if it ever happens), would give much better TA support.  Its hard to escape the conclusion looking at the long term share price graph that this is a company that's in systemic decline.

[winner (n)]

Mark sent me a note via LinkedIn -


Merry Christmas Aotearoa! Spent the last two days in stores with our incredible teams. So grateful I get to work with passionate men and women who love our company and love New Zealand. We getting stronger together.

[Auto Rower]

Mark sent me a note via LinkedIn -


Merry Christmas Aotearoa! Spent the last two days in stores with our incredible teams. So grateful I get to work with passionate men and women who love our company and love New Zealand. We getting stronger together.

 It is quite a testament to his commitment and work ethic ,this commitment and drive from a C E O usually pays off in the long run ,early days yet of of course but good on him.

[LaserEyeKiwi]

The Warehouse Group confirms leaner operating structure�

04/02/2026, 08:30 NZDT, GENERAL

NZX | Media release – 4 February 2026

The Warehouse Group confirms leaner operating structure

The Warehouse Group today confirmed a new leaner operating structure for its head office, including co-sourcing with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). These changes form one part of the cost reset programme signalled in November 2025, which includes wider non-labour cost reductions to ensure the Group's cost base is sustainable for a value retailer. The programme aims to support a Cost of Doing Business (CODB) below 31% of sales.

As part of the new operating model, the Group is expanding its partnership with TCS to support the delivery of several corporate and administrative functions, including parts of technology, accounting, call centres and payroll. TCS will provide the Group with access to modern platforms, capacity and capability, including AI, at a scale and cost that would not be possible to build internally. With TCS supporting these functions, the Group's head office teams will be able to make more progress on critical areas like its in-store experience, merchandise and supply chain.

Chief Executive Officer Mark Stirton said, "Our cost base is not sustainable for a value retailer. As one of New Zealand's largest retail employers we must make these tough choices for our 10,000 team members and their families across the country and return the Group to sustainable profitability."

The restructure will see around 270 head office roles leave the business, with a small number of areas continuing through consultation.

"We're supporting everyone affected with care during what we appreciate is a difficult time for them," said Mr Stirton.

"Together with the non-labour cost reduction initiatives underway across the Group, these changes will help strengthen profitability and allow us to deliver better value for our customers over the long term."

The restructure will result in redundancy costs of approximately $6 million in FY26. This will be recognised as an unusual item and will impact Reported EBIT for the year.

The new structure that supports the co-source model is expected to significantly lower the Group's labour cost base. Labour cost savings of approximately $3-4 million are expected in FY26, with annualised savings expected to increase to approximately $17 million by FY31. This will deliver total expected savings of approximately $70 million over the initial 5-year contract term. These savings are in addition to the estimated $40 million over five years announced by the Group in September 2025 on its licenses and managed services partnership with TCS.

The Warehouse Group will provide a broader update on the cost reset programme as part of its FY26 Half Year Results which will be released on 27 March 2026.

Ends

[LaserEyeKiwi]

Will be interesting to see how many other companies follow WHS lead if this works out as planned.

[Basil]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks the annual savings being targeted are underwhelming.

[Crackity]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks the annual savings being targeted are underwhelming.

I've seen what I imagine is the masterplan on a spare blackboard next to the executive bog at Warehouse Way


1. Get rid of the hugely loss making disaster called  the market and less horrendous but still troublesome Torpedo 7

2. Get rid of the Head Office minions

3. Sell the Tindall two holdings to Aldi

4 . Pascoes are happy / minority shareholders are happy / Tindall Foundation gets more cash to distribute

5. Er, that's it

 

[Basil]

Your dogs of the dow stratagy is not without merit mate. If you buy enough beaten down dogs one or two of them might bark.

[Crackity]

Your dogs of the dow stratagy is not without merit mate. If you buy enough beaten down dogs one or two of them might bark.

And ooooo look - you are #9 currently

And I'm #19 - wait till my WHS and ARB  takeovers happen eh

And we won't mention that dodgy doggy chap at 20


And 4 weeks till we get to go boating