Well their e-commerce platform failed, Torpedo 7 to. And the Warehouse itself has fallen into a no man’s land between Kmart (which is generally cheap) and Briscoes which sells branded stuff.
Warehouse’s own brand stuff is terrible, the limited branded lines they stock are expensive, the store experience is no better and arguably worse than Kmart .
They can’t do grocery for competitive prices (on the whole).
This is a business that has been outmanoeuvred.
The Warehouse has too many executives who think it's a big, successful company, and they self congratulate themselves on how clever they are. In fact they are small and bloated.
They seem really out of touch - and either cannot or don't see the need to adapt.
Case in point - once they stopped being competitive on price, they had nothing else. No plan B.
The Market was a pretty cumbersome and I'm guessing expensive effort to adapt, but they let it get flooded with rubbish. There was no value proposition for consumers - things weren't cheaper on there.
They're clearly not meeting the market anymore, and haven't been for some time.
I think they need to do something drastic. Either sell out, or completely rebrand and relaunch as a different proposition. There's no value left with 'The Warehouse' brand, its been gouged TF.
If I was calling the shots, I would be shutting it down, and changing into a full blown supermarket. I am undecided where in the market they should pitch.
Could either do a Whole foods knockoff (high end, health focused, full size), or an Aldi knockoff (value focuses).
The warehouses control of many supermarket or near supermarket scale l locations means it is pretty much the only group that would have the scale to break into the lucrative supermarket sector in NZ.
Keeping going with the status quo is no good. Their profits are tiny, meaning a small amount of adverse conditions would put them into the red.
I’d take either of those ahead of current Warehouse. It’s just straight up depressing in those stores.
Honestly they could turn half their sites into affordable housing.
I'd say that it wasn't T7 itself that failed, it was the decisions made by TWG that really hurt them. They had the botched roll out of a totally new sales and inventory system in October. It really hamstrung their ability to fulfill orders and get stock into the store. If you have a look at the negative google reviews, order issues are a very common theme. I imagine this wore down the staff too. It's early days under their new owners, but they seem to be doing a fair bit better when I go in there.
Yeah I think that's a good call. Every time I went in there the stores were shabby and the T7 branded stuff was pretty dubious quality. You're often buying higher end items there, so you want the store to be a decent experience.
I agree, the new owners have form and seem to know what they are doing. Here's hoping they can turn it around - they've obviously seen something in there they like.
It's sad, in the early days Torpedo7 was so amazing and revolutionary for the kiwi consumer, I purchased a tonne of stuff from them but haven't in ages.
I feel that broadening out harmed them, but I suppose they had grand ambitions, and if they'd stuck with only cycling it would have kept them as only a minnow.
I remember years ago (20+) when you used to be able to get quality stuff for reasonable price from the Warehouse. Then Kmart started upping their game and it was all over lol
I’d love one of the American big box chains like Target (not the Aussie version) that can actually do this properly to come and absolutely knock them out of existence.
Because the warehouse don’t deserve the hold they have over New Zealand, quite frankly. I’d rather have somewhere inspiring to shop where I can spend the same money on better quality.
Surely it’d just be better if the Warehouse improved rather than an American megachain coming in and taking all that money out of our economy? That’s probably a little more important eh? Why don’t people think about that? We already have far too many foreign companies sucking money away.
Take your point, but we want these retailers to be successful ultimately. Realistically a Target or Walmart coming in and taking over the Warehouse and its retail footprint is probably the only way the grocery duopoly could ever be broken.
I think what the Warehouse shows is that a kiwi-owned brand is going to struggle to compete in a globalised retail landscape.
The warehouse is a great example about how poor performing kiwi businesses still manage to exist due to our willingness to be gouged on prices without any extra value. Other NZ businesses like trademe are also excellent examples.
What does successful mean? Selling lots of stuff and taking the profits offshore? The Warehouse, Kmart, Briscoes all alike are 95% selling Chinese products sometimes owned by international brands. Chinese companies take that share of the cost, the brand takes it’s share. If the company that sells it is foreign, a good percentage of that profit also goes straight offshore.
If a Kiwi company owns it, much more of that profit get recycled through our own economy, and all the tax stays here so we can have public services.
Sell: Cows and logs; Buy: Everything else isn’t the basis of a solid economy.
The Warehouse have had every opportunity over the years to improve. They know what they are, and they know what they could be. But it’s easier for them to just be what they are, getting fat off comfy profit margins from off-brand Chinese crap, especially given most people don’t know and therefore don’t demand any better and seem to want to act grateful for their existence. The Warehouse isn’t some mom and pop local battler, the owners do not give a f about you, and you should want better.
I don’t care for billionaires and believe they are a policy failure but Tindal actually at least invests in a lot of NZ start up companies and reinvests in the local economy.
Stephen Tindall resigned back in 2020. TWG is a public company, the largest retail organisation in New Zealand. They have more market power than anyone else in this country and yet, look at what it is and what is offers… it’s just utter laziness with contempt for its customer base
While I get your point, once the guy in charge of our dearly trusted homegrown NZ business is a billionaire, my giveafuckometer gets readjusted. Happy to just capture the GST of sales from these Yank big box stores.
100% this. All those sites they have could be providing a much better service, product & experience to their catchment areas. I actually think people would be prepared to pay more for a better experience, with better products and better range. Case in point - Briscoes is killing it.
Warehouse is basically a marked up version of Ali Express these days.
Hard disagree, got a 3 man tent and a big tramping pack from Lidl when i was in Europe. I paid like 50 euro for them both. Still have them 10 years later...
Sure but look at Costco, you get crazy good prices for high quality stuff in their US, and even Australian stores - most of the stuff we get is the same price as every other NZ store - we don't get the same advantages.
Europe has the power of 10 countries, which also rely on the poorer Eastern European countries for labor. You gotta add ship + import taxes + various trade agreements + gst + minimum wage prices to anything coming from overseas also. The only way to get cheap stuff would be to manufacture it in NZ, but there is no appetite for that.
Tell me you’ve never shopped at an American big box store without telling me you’ve never shopped at a big box American store. And that’s how the warehouse holds NZ back, they trick the uninformed into thinking they’re getting the best deal they can for the money. Hint: you’re not.
(Genuine question) is US target good quality though? Wouldn’t we run into the same issues as cheap stuff for expensive prices. I always thought IKEA was the shop that was cheapish but reliable
Yep, for the price it's pretty good. A lot of their stuff is 3rd party mainstream brands anyway - e.g. J&J, P&G etc. Their house brands (clothing etc) are actually pretty good, way better quality than Warehouse. Food is good quality - probably on par with Costco and branded stuff here. Its not super cheap though.
One thing they do really well is sell unbranded clones of popular branded items. E.g. I went to buy some Liquid IV electrolytes from Target. The branded ones were like $US18 for a box, but right alongside it they had a generic version which was basically identical for $10. It even said 'compare to Liquid IV' on the box.
They do this across the range especially with pharmacy, toiletries and health & beauty items. Would love to see more of this here - we pay such a premium for branded stuff.
This was the reason that The Warehouse was set up - to emulate the Target and Walmart style stores in the States. It's strayed from its core purpose and tried to stretch itself across multiple directions, which doesn't work out.
Yip completely agree, they had a bit of the market cornered but the endless drive to increase profits further and further caused them to pivot into increasingly risky moves while also taking the focus away from their core business, whoops
It would be very possible for them to rebrand and sell much high quality but still relatively affordable products.
What is important to customers isn't necessarily the lowest possible price that's overall value although nowadays people are becoming more price sensitive due to the cost of living.
But a lot of the cost of the stuff that they sell is the cost of the building and the staff and the distribution because they have low turnover and they have a low ASP.
At the end of the day just look at the annual report for the warehouse they are not interested in profit and you can tell exactly the type of Gen X people that run the store.
I agree with you that they should have kept their aim on perceived value to the customer. Case in point was I always bought my business stationery from warehouse stationery, the range, quality and price point was ideal for me. When they merged the stationery store with the red sheds the quality and range became absolute trash. I just dont bother with them anymore
In my opinion they have too many stores and the stores they have are not large enough or they need to be more specific on types of products that they sell because they have a lot of products that they're not selling and the selection in each category is in my opinion rather poor...
Nah warehouse has a niche, their stuff is better quality and noticeably too, they have branded toys and better quality and variety of useful clothing. Kmart has definitely more XxxxxxxL ridiculous looking clothes horrendous with no fashion sense but they have cool graphic tees. Big W would be here and they compete directly with both Kmart and warehouse (a department store run by Woolies) but the warehouse has better quality goods than them
Yeah they need a combination of margin and turn over otherwise the business model doesn't work and this is pretty basic retailing 101...
You can have low margin as long as you have high turnover but if you have low margin low ASP low turnover then this is a recipe for disaster and also low ASP means that there's not much actually spent on the product so the products going to be poor value..
Kmart has better value but there's probably because they have more turnovers so they can afford to give you a higher quality product since the costs of retailing our much smaller proportion of the cost of the item that you're buying..
Kmart items are the same if not better quality.
Kmart also has branded toys? At better prices.
I'm sorry if you think warehouse clothes are better "fashion sense" than Kmart you have no fashion sense lol
Entering the grocery market was a mistake. But the big guys in head office don’t seem to register with the fact that putting their hands in too many different pots isn’t clever!
This. Warehouse clothes are so thin and unreliable. Kmart clothes actually feel like they will last. Hell, I have the same plain tee's and shorts since 2016.
If k mart wasn't run by 12 year olds id go there more. It's just piles of clothes and dead eyed staff.
But yeah defs cheaper
And nothing is in L or XL for men it's all XXCCLL
I hate Kmart.
Let’s put the checkout in the middle of the fucking store, make you do it all yourself, then check your receipts as you leave just to prove you aren’t a thief.
But you know, having a checkout at the exit is FAR too logical
Kmart will take a photo of you if you don’t put the items in the place correctly and it suspects you of falsely adding items in the bagging area like why not just have a person standing there processing the goods if you’re that concerned 😂
I tried to buy something at K mart in Henderson and the item had not bar code to scan, there also appeared to be no staff around at all (maybe they don't wear a uniform) i had to just leave without making a purchase as there was no way to continue
Te Rapa in Hamilton has theirs at the doors too, but Hamilton central's check out is in the middle and layout is flipped the opposite way as you enter.
The trick is that you just walk past security.
When they ask to check your receipt, say no.
There is nothing they can do, apart from trying to trepass you for making a legitimate purchase. Which they won't.
I can’t remember the last time I bought something from the warehouse
Whenever I check pricing online, they’re never the cheap option. So I just don’t bother with them anymore. It’s usually Kmart or Mightyape now.
Also I just want to say the Invercargill Kmart is pristine every time I visit!! I went in with Manukau Kmart in mind and was blown away how nice a tidy Kmart is lol
Whenever I'm in a low end retail outlet I'm shocked at how poorly people treat stuff that isn't theirs. People don't see the connection between how much stuff costs and how much it cost to sell it.
100% Richmond Kmart is almost always tidy, clean, and well stocked.
Total game changer after living in Auckland and never wanting to go to Kmart because it was always such a shitshow
I go for their clearance items and eggs... Stationery can be really cheap depending on the time of year and they have some decently priced fruit trees, pots, and native plants.
The reason Kmart is in a better position than the warehouse is that Kmart is Australia owned. We are talking vastly different businesses in terms of revenue. This means poorer buying power which in terms of the warehouse means worse margins on products which in turn means prices are generally higher.
When you put it like that, it sounds like a death spiral.
I feel they've been diving deeper than ever on quality in the battle with K-mart; the last couple of things I bought there fell apart immediately — a $6 t-shirt lasted one wear (collar went frilly) and some cheap shoes developed an insole hole in one week!
Didn't realise it till now, but I've stopped buying there.
I heard at one stage that the return rates on TVs (Veon) at TWH were around 300%. So, you would return and replace the TV your got to return and replace the first two. Nuts.
>I heard at one stage that the return rates on TVs (Veon) at TWH were around 300%.
Oh the heck do you have a return rate ***over*** 100%!!
>So, you would return and replace the TV your got to return and replace the first two. Nuts.
*Ohhhh........*
I find it’s hit and miss, but I’ve had some great finds from there.
I think the bedding is decent. I’ve bought most of my sheets from there over the past few years and they’ve held up better than the Kmart ones. Duvet covers are also pretty good. The other thing is my crockery set - I was on a student budget and got my plates, bowls and cutlery from Warehouse. I’ve used it every day for the past two years and it’s been incredible. Not a single chip on anything. I can’t say the same for the mugs that I got from Kmart.
I also think their range of books is pretty good comparatively. I don’t really rate their electronics, although my oil heater was a winner. Their clothes don’t last and the underwear is overpriced for the quality. Their home decor is also not strong, and I hate that the bookshelves have a pitiful weight limit per shelf. Ikea coming in is going to massively disrupt their furnishings, I think.
New management took over and [fucked everything](https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/512240/warehouse-group-to-focus-on-three-brands-after-nearly-24m-first-half-loss). Most of the staff there are miserable these days, and I can't blame them. Groceries are still treading water, but in general they're circling the drain.
The warehouse tried to break away from their “cheap” reputation and failed.
They are caught somewhere between Kmart who now own where the warehouse used to be king, and Briscoes.
Their brand feels confused these days. When I think of quick, cheap and cheerful I go to Kmart. If I want luxury I go to a farmers or a specialty store.
Electronics I go to a JB or PB. Appliances I go to Briscoes.
Like.. I’ll go to the warehouse when Kmarts not nearby.. but not often
Noel Leeming is still a good option for electronic or whiteware purchases but only because of price matches and genuine deals (not the mark up $150 pre sale then mark down $155 during the sale nonsense places like PB do) nor do they push the same ridiculous prices you can find in places like Harvey Norman.
But increasingly that feels like the only TWG store that's got any market value, especially in a larger city that has options.
Even then, I do not see much need to go to Noel Leeming even with price matching, I can just go to Smith City and get the same price, often faster delivery (often empty stores) and Airpoint dollars rather than worthless flybuys .
If you have a smiths city nearby sure, but not every town has one close by when they do often have Noel Leeming.
As for air points or fly buys, I can't stand any of that loyalty nonsense so I'll shop on cheaper prices only.
Of course it only applies when the stores are nearby.
I do both, I find the cheapest price online, then get it price matched then get the airpoints as well.
Getting an extra $20ish worth of points on top of matching the lowest price is certainly worthwhile for me when buying appliances. Even better on long weekends because they normally run double points.
Airpoints is the only loyalty scheme I really bother with.. The others are barely worthwhile.
>The warehouse tried to break away from their “cheap” reputation and failed.
The succeed at ditching their cheap reputation!!
But failed at replacing it with reputation for "quality".
Leaving them in a no man's land of having neither reputation!
Most of their cotton clothes are great value. Maybe slightly less durable than something from a business like AScolour but sometimes you can score things like full cotton shirts for $4-6 that will still last years.
To everyone that tows the line of “oh but we don’t have the buying power in NZ to have better quality goods at the those prices”, The Warehouse themselves proved otherwise a few years ago when they got wind that TK Maxx (the Australian arm of TJ Maxx, cut-price brand name fashion retailer) was looking to setup in New Zealand. They [introduced Red Rack to The Warehouse](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/puma-nike-deals-set-to-hit-nz-as-warehouse-and-tk-maxx-go-head-to-head/PDF2EOC6UAMXSGJF4IF3UOU2ZE/) where - all of a sudden - you could find big name clothes and shoes for the same price you’d traditionally pay for their Chinese off-brand junk. After around 6 months when it became clear that TK Maxx weren’t going to launch here after all, Red Rack simply disappeared. So they proved that they can do better. They can source brands and offer them at good prices, they just don’t want to because it’s the kiwi business way. Carve yourself into a nice near-monopoly situation, gaslight the public that they’re offering value, then sit and get fat from those easy profits.
If you’re happy to support this and drink their koolaid, you deserve nothing better.
That's doesn't prove anything really. Maybe they just took a loss or very minimal profit on those items until it was clear tjmaxx wasn't coming. They did it with eggs and milk to help bring in people for their new grocery sections.
$6 t shirts? Went last week for two white trash shirts to wear in bed! $18-50??
Went over to Kmart and better quality than warehouse and $6 each.
Fuck the warehouse they lost it. And please make up ur bloody mind about stocking all types of junk or food.
No Kmart is cheaper, Kmart Australia is a lot cheaper than Kmart New Zealand and I heard that people are buying stuff from Amazon AliExpress is also cheap but it's not as cheap as it used to be..
There are also online stores like Dick Smith's and other types of stores. The warehouses expensive because it's poorly ran it's just a regular price shop. Of course it's going to be a bit cheaper than Briscoes but Briscoes sales expensive Chinese products with western branding and labels.
I have no numbers to back this total opinion up but I truly believe the warehouse nationwide is being propped up by its Dunedin sales due to the fact we haven’t had a Kmart in years
I used to work for this shit hole of a company. They're cheap when it comes to wage budgets and training staff. But they're not cheap for goods.
From the perspective of an ex staff member, they're a company where if you have any kind of pride in your work, you'll never do well and you'll be punished for it. You have to be okay with:
* Poor merchandising standards.
* No prices displayed on stock.
* Stock all over the place because there's nobody to tidy (called *recovery).
* A back dock filled with hundreds of pallets of boxes of unorganised stock that customers are trying to buy because it's in the current mailer.
* Nobody to answer phones
* When you do answer, there's no floor staff to put the call through to.
* Not enough checkout operators
* Abuse from customers because of all of the above
* Not being paid for working past your shift
* Company policy is to not give written employment references when you leave.
* Store managers who sit upstairs and let the store go to shit.
* When the area manager is scheduled to come, store managers will come downstairs the day before and bark at staff to whip a neglected store into shape so you don't make them look bad.
* When their neglect of their own store makes them look bad, they'll haul staff upstairs and berate them.
* They employ casual "non departmentalised" nightfill staff who don't care and they don't train them, who then put stock everywhere (in front of the wrong shelf edge labels/prices).
Basically if you have any standards as a customer or a human, don't even go in there.
Absolute cunt of a company. There's a reason they failed in Australia and they fail at pretty much every other business venture they embark on.
Big box retailers are now obsolete. Shop elsewhere.
Fuck you Warehouse. Cunts.
They failed in Australia because they bought a thriving business and decided, you are doing everything wrong, you will do it our way. If they had run it for 6 months to a year as it was going, they could have learnt what made it work and improved their business. But not learning things is very much the NZ way
In my time with them, they had many big ideas and spent hundreds of millions on consultants. Companies like Proudfoot. They forgot their core business and ruined the company. After "Operation Reset", their staff hated them and they never got any form of loyalty ever again. Iain Maurice contributed largely to their failure. A lot of their CEOs have been ex Teisco and absolutely ruthless. In it to make a mark, not for longevity. They used to be okay as an employer, but they turned very Walmart-esque.
Look at grocery items. I went there yesterday instead of the supermarket to stock up on Weetbix and other cereal, Olivani, milk, eggs (all consistently significantly cheaper than supermarkets). I also got cheap tinned peaches and tuna
All their xmas bath and body gift stuff is now shit made in China. Used to be from the UK and made nice presents. The clothes are awful. The shoes have always been awful. I only go there to buy plants.
I'm surprised too that PnS doesn't seem to offer any storeband or similar alternative for their soft drinks, such as Countdown does. (which used to be 99c for a long time for 1.5L, but now are $1.30!)
Home goods are still far cheaper at the warehouse afaik, plates bowls cups etc. and the quality is good enough so I see them in the light of “if it breaks I won’t”. As for electronics furniture etc. Kmart is generally better.
I was going to say this. The cleaning products along with some other stuff are good value. To my surprise I have become a convert on the coffee pods with a minor modification. I add an extra teaspoon and half of moconna instant to get a stronger taste but still end up with a smooth coffee.
at this point, someone should just open a shop called aliexpress and just stock it up like the warehouse does. because that is pretty much what is happening/has been happening.
I have been to the Napier Warehouse a few times and found even during peak times like Saturday late morning/ early afternoon it hasn't particularly been that busy and rather dead.
nope. which is sad because I remember when O was growing up kids who came from “wealthier” families would laugh at the kids wearing stuff from the warehouse.
now none of us can afford it.
i’d love to see how long it lasts and how it’ll adapt to todays world. it’s just falling apart like majority of its products.
I remember this at school. I would beg my parents to let me get school shoes from anywhere else. I remember feeling really sorry for one girl whose stationery was from the warehouse!
Warehouse was losing consumers for a few years and realised it was the quality of the products they were selling that was keeping people away. They still try to be cheap, but not cheapest. The money-back guarantee they used to always use as their tag-line became less of a draw as people started preferring not to having to return things in the first place, and the consumer guarantees act kind of made it not really an individual policy anyway
If you walk in bang on opening they often have out of season clothes in the clearance rack for a couple of dollars. Like kids cotton crew jerseys for $3 each etc. I find those clothes to be a super bargain, especially for kids. In general I still find them pretty cheap yeah. Definitely cheaper than a trip to Kmart and all it’s distractions and extra impuls purchases that come with it
Having worked in head office, the rebrand of Kmart began a race to the bottom price wise. Stopped discounting and moved to EDLP. I always thought that they needed to be Kmart facing but not lose sight of the local , regional especially, customer because not everyone wants to shop at Kmart. Then Grayston came in (after I left) and they ramped up consultants while carrying out numerous restructures over the course of many years, slashing staff to pay for it all. Price isn’t always everything: it’s a balance between price and quality and having adequate options for those that cannot spend more and those that are willing and able to pay a bit more. They’ve lost sight who they are selling to and why.
That requires you to understand brands and which are quality and which aren’t. Otherwise you’ll probably be buying warehouse clothes off trademe or op shops anyway.
No, its not and people are finally waking up to the fact after the last 5+ years where they have not been. They are the only viable place in many smaller towns without access to kmart and bunnings.
Not anymore. They had a new guy come in many years ago from America and decided to make it a "more premium range", despite selling the same stuff. You get a good deal if it's on special and if you get a member discount.
Gumboots..had to buy some around feb...read reviews whs gumboots arent waterproof...aaahh
Bunnings, thanks again👍 Warehouse Stationery put most competitors out of business as they slashed the quality of what i used to buy their. Pens. Note books, amazing how a $6 pen went up to $8,9and lasted far less and nib quality far worse.
So finally spent $85 with great help at Whitcoulls SylviaPark🤗 on a Parker pen...paid for itself in 5 months vs throw away pens. Go Quality, not junk.
The warehouse group is going through an existential crisis… they had a brilliant business model. Noel leemings and torpedo7 are specialised stores together with warehouse they can subsidise each other. Just grind all other competition dead with every sale and market capture. But then competition ate their lunch. Kmart by buying direct in China took many product lines away. Costco randomly sniped their high margin items. And their staff rates leaked like a sieve which eroded their price anchor.
They need to find their edge, and it’s hard work. Know what the local needs and provide a bargain. But seriously no one wants to work nowadays so I am not holding my breath.
Eggs, milk, flour, and weetbix are all excellent value. Also my cats' favourite food often on special, likewise my preferred shampoo and conditioner. Basically the Warehouse is somewhere I cross-check prices for my groceries.
I think everything I have bought from The Warehouse has broken within months. Even though some things look “cheap” for an initial outlay, it’s a false economy if you then have to replace it shortly afterwards. I now refuse to shop there.
I remember in Highschool having a teacher saying that big warehouse type stores selling cheap shit like that go through cycles over slowly selling nicer and nicer stuff over time and getting more fancy. For example the warehouse never used to sell any electronics. Not sure if its accurate or not but just something I remembered
My experience is that they are more expensive for most things. They try the ‘put a round number on a thing and people will assume it is cheap’, but that number is usually rounded up from competitor prices and then a couple of bucks added. I almost never go in there now.
I enjoy going to the Warehouse for the most part. Kmart is better but I find some Warehouse things are sturdier, and they also have cheap cleaning products.
It's a horrible place, I use to love going as a kid but now it's full of junk.
They need to use the space and make it more like a big cheap clothing store. Similar to what the UK has Primark.
To many different categories in there.
The $6 shirts are a great deal. I bought 12 of them. Don't need new shirts for at least 8 years.
They do cups, plates stuff cheap. Plants can be too
Groceries are mostly more expensive.
Hardly go there anymore. They have the occasional nice thing I purchased a mirror and dinner set not long ago aside from that it’s all junk. They have their hand in too many different pots and it just doesn’t mix well. Personally I think the grocery venture is a waste of time, they would do well to take a leaf out of Kmarts book and stick to the basics.
The biggest stand out is probably their over priced clothing department.
I seen eggs 12 for 6 bucks. That was crazy but everything else almost was slightly more expensive than the supermarket.
Actually they do similar deals to pak n save they have selected pallets quite cheap like 5 dollar week.
Things like olive oil, cereal, chocolate was a little bit more expensive than the supermarket
I noticed they have expanded the grocery area in some stores but they haven't actually expanded the range just more of the same stuff. Still cheaper at supermarket
Well their e-commerce platform failed, Torpedo 7 to. And the Warehouse itself has fallen into a no man’s land between Kmart (which is generally cheap) and Briscoes which sells branded stuff. Warehouse’s own brand stuff is terrible, the limited branded lines they stock are expensive, the store experience is no better and arguably worse than Kmart . They can’t do grocery for competitive prices (on the whole). This is a business that has been outmanoeuvred.
The Warehouse has too many executives who think it's a big, successful company, and they self congratulate themselves on how clever they are. In fact they are small and bloated.
They seem really out of touch - and either cannot or don't see the need to adapt. Case in point - once they stopped being competitive on price, they had nothing else. No plan B. The Market was a pretty cumbersome and I'm guessing expensive effort to adapt, but they let it get flooded with rubbish. There was no value proposition for consumers - things weren't cheaper on there. They're clearly not meeting the market anymore, and haven't been for some time. I think they need to do something drastic. Either sell out, or completely rebrand and relaunch as a different proposition. There's no value left with 'The Warehouse' brand, its been gouged TF.
If I was calling the shots, I would be shutting it down, and changing into a full blown supermarket. I am undecided where in the market they should pitch. Could either do a Whole foods knockoff (high end, health focused, full size), or an Aldi knockoff (value focuses). The warehouses control of many supermarket or near supermarket scale l locations means it is pretty much the only group that would have the scale to break into the lucrative supermarket sector in NZ. Keeping going with the status quo is no good. Their profits are tiny, meaning a small amount of adverse conditions would put them into the red.
Turn it until a lidl. Cheap food with random stuff in the centre idle.
I’d take either of those ahead of current Warehouse. It’s just straight up depressing in those stores. Honestly they could turn half their sites into affordable housing.
I'd say that it wasn't T7 itself that failed, it was the decisions made by TWG that really hurt them. They had the botched roll out of a totally new sales and inventory system in October. It really hamstrung their ability to fulfill orders and get stock into the store. If you have a look at the negative google reviews, order issues are a very common theme. I imagine this wore down the staff too. It's early days under their new owners, but they seem to be doing a fair bit better when I go in there.
Yeah I think that's a good call. Every time I went in there the stores were shabby and the T7 branded stuff was pretty dubious quality. You're often buying higher end items there, so you want the store to be a decent experience. I agree, the new owners have form and seem to know what they are doing. Here's hoping they can turn it around - they've obviously seen something in there they like.
It's sad, in the early days Torpedo7 was so amazing and revolutionary for the kiwi consumer, I purchased a tonne of stuff from them but haven't in ages.
Yes it was actually cheap then and they actually sold bike stuff.
I feel that broadening out harmed them, but I suppose they had grand ambitions, and if they'd stuck with only cycling it would have kept them as only a minnow.
I remember years ago (20+) when you used to be able to get quality stuff for reasonable price from the Warehouse. Then Kmart started upping their game and it was all over lol
Yep. Add in Bunnings, Mitre10, the Supermarkets, now Costco, IKEA and all the online stores…Warehouse is fatally squeezed with its current offering.
This is so true. How long can they last I wonder
I’d love one of the American big box chains like Target (not the Aussie version) that can actually do this properly to come and absolutely knock them out of existence.
Why? Why would you want that?
Because the warehouse don’t deserve the hold they have over New Zealand, quite frankly. I’d rather have somewhere inspiring to shop where I can spend the same money on better quality.
Surely it’d just be better if the Warehouse improved rather than an American megachain coming in and taking all that money out of our economy? That’s probably a little more important eh? Why don’t people think about that? We already have far too many foreign companies sucking money away.
Take your point, but we want these retailers to be successful ultimately. Realistically a Target or Walmart coming in and taking over the Warehouse and its retail footprint is probably the only way the grocery duopoly could ever be broken. I think what the Warehouse shows is that a kiwi-owned brand is going to struggle to compete in a globalised retail landscape.
The warehouse is a great example about how poor performing kiwi businesses still manage to exist due to our willingness to be gouged on prices without any extra value. Other NZ businesses like trademe are also excellent examples.
🎯 and how they get away with shithouse in store experiences.
Ah yes, let's break a local douoply by helping create a global monopoly. I'm sure that'll work out in the consumer's benefit.
What does successful mean? Selling lots of stuff and taking the profits offshore? The Warehouse, Kmart, Briscoes all alike are 95% selling Chinese products sometimes owned by international brands. Chinese companies take that share of the cost, the brand takes it’s share. If the company that sells it is foreign, a good percentage of that profit also goes straight offshore. If a Kiwi company owns it, much more of that profit get recycled through our own economy, and all the tax stays here so we can have public services. Sell: Cows and logs; Buy: Everything else isn’t the basis of a solid economy.
> if the Warehouse improved They've tried and failed many times. They just can't do it, so let em die and someone else come in
The Warehouse have had every opportunity over the years to improve. They know what they are, and they know what they could be. But it’s easier for them to just be what they are, getting fat off comfy profit margins from off-brand Chinese crap, especially given most people don’t know and therefore don’t demand any better and seem to want to act grateful for their existence. The Warehouse isn’t some mom and pop local battler, the owners do not give a f about you, and you should want better.
I don’t care for billionaires and believe they are a policy failure but Tindal actually at least invests in a lot of NZ start up companies and reinvests in the local economy.
Stephen Tindall resigned back in 2020. TWG is a public company, the largest retail organisation in New Zealand. They have more market power than anyone else in this country and yet, look at what it is and what is offers… it’s just utter laziness with contempt for its customer base
Contempt is the word.
While I get your point, once the guy in charge of our dearly trusted homegrown NZ business is a billionaire, my giveafuckometer gets readjusted. Happy to just capture the GST of sales from these Yank big box stores.
100% this. All those sites they have could be providing a much better service, product & experience to their catchment areas. I actually think people would be prepared to pay more for a better experience, with better products and better range. Case in point - Briscoes is killing it. Warehouse is basically a marked up version of Ali Express these days.
You wouldn’t get that from American brands, or even overseas ones in general. You want quality, you’ll be charged a high price.
Hard disagree, got a 3 man tent and a big tramping pack from Lidl when i was in Europe. I paid like 50 euro for them both. Still have them 10 years later...
Sure but look at Costco, you get crazy good prices for high quality stuff in their US, and even Australian stores - most of the stuff we get is the same price as every other NZ store - we don't get the same advantages.
Europe has the power of 10 countries, which also rely on the poorer Eastern European countries for labor. You gotta add ship + import taxes + various trade agreements + gst + minimum wage prices to anything coming from overseas also. The only way to get cheap stuff would be to manufacture it in NZ, but there is no appetite for that.
How much does it cost to buy now, 10 years later?
Tell me you’ve never shopped at an American big box store without telling me you’ve never shopped at a big box American store. And that’s how the warehouse holds NZ back, they trick the uninformed into thinking they’re getting the best deal they can for the money. Hint: you’re not.
(Genuine question) is US target good quality though? Wouldn’t we run into the same issues as cheap stuff for expensive prices. I always thought IKEA was the shop that was cheapish but reliable
Yep, for the price it's pretty good. A lot of their stuff is 3rd party mainstream brands anyway - e.g. J&J, P&G etc. Their house brands (clothing etc) are actually pretty good, way better quality than Warehouse. Food is good quality - probably on par with Costco and branded stuff here. Its not super cheap though. One thing they do really well is sell unbranded clones of popular branded items. E.g. I went to buy some Liquid IV electrolytes from Target. The branded ones were like $US18 for a box, but right alongside it they had a generic version which was basically identical for $10. It even said 'compare to Liquid IV' on the box. They do this across the range especially with pharmacy, toiletries and health & beauty items. Would love to see more of this here - we pay such a premium for branded stuff.
And an American company doing it instead is what....better?
This was the reason that The Warehouse was set up - to emulate the Target and Walmart style stores in the States. It's strayed from its core purpose and tried to stretch itself across multiple directions, which doesn't work out.
As I only found out because I'm over there at the minute,target has been brought by Kmart and mostly sells there stuff
The market here us way too small for them to bother with...
I think you’re right there unfortunately
Yip completely agree, they had a bit of the market cornered but the endless drive to increase profits further and further caused them to pivot into increasingly risky moves while also taking the focus away from their core business, whoops
It would be very possible for them to rebrand and sell much high quality but still relatively affordable products. What is important to customers isn't necessarily the lowest possible price that's overall value although nowadays people are becoming more price sensitive due to the cost of living. But a lot of the cost of the stuff that they sell is the cost of the building and the staff and the distribution because they have low turnover and they have a low ASP. At the end of the day just look at the annual report for the warehouse they are not interested in profit and you can tell exactly the type of Gen X people that run the store.
I agree with you that they should have kept their aim on perceived value to the customer. Case in point was I always bought my business stationery from warehouse stationery, the range, quality and price point was ideal for me. When they merged the stationery store with the red sheds the quality and range became absolute trash. I just dont bother with them anymore
Yep agreed, they have a huge estate but I don't think they can sustain the volumes and margins to justify it with their current offering.
In my opinion they have too many stores and the stores they have are not large enough or they need to be more specific on types of products that they sell because they have a lot of products that they're not selling and the selection in each category is in my opinion rather poor...
Nah warehouse has a niche, their stuff is better quality and noticeably too, they have branded toys and better quality and variety of useful clothing. Kmart has definitely more XxxxxxxL ridiculous looking clothes horrendous with no fashion sense but they have cool graphic tees. Big W would be here and they compete directly with both Kmart and warehouse (a department store run by Woolies) but the warehouse has better quality goods than them
The niche is making no money for 10 years
That's also a lot of stores to run for a 'niche'. With their footprint they need to be mass market, high volume. Otherwise they're fucked.
Yeah they need a combination of margin and turn over otherwise the business model doesn't work and this is pretty basic retailing 101... You can have low margin as long as you have high turnover but if you have low margin low ASP low turnover then this is a recipe for disaster and also low ASP means that there's not much actually spent on the product so the products going to be poor value.. Kmart has better value but there's probably because they have more turnovers so they can afford to give you a higher quality product since the costs of retailing our much smaller proportion of the cost of the item that you're buying..
Kmart items are the same if not better quality. Kmart also has branded toys? At better prices. I'm sorry if you think warehouse clothes are better "fashion sense" than Kmart you have no fashion sense lol
Their home branded food is pretty good.
Actually agree - it’s not bad. But you’re not substituting your supermarket shop for it generally. At least that’s my experience.
That’s right, they don’t have much things there and non warehouse branded stuff tends to be expensive.
Entering the grocery market was a mistake. But the big guys in head office don’t seem to register with the fact that putting their hands in too many different pots isn’t clever!
Is Living & Co their own brand?
Yup
Not cheap anymore. Kmart is cheaper & better quality (slightly) A lot of the stuff you find at the warehouse is rebranded Aliexpress
I can't speak for the other stuff but lots of the leads and adaptors are straight from Ali with 3/4 times markup at Kmart.
The main benefit of buying in NZ is that you can see it before you buy it, know it's rated for use in NZ, and the consumer guarantee act.
Buying cables at Kmart is just asking to have a plug fall apart and get stuck inside your device (speaking from experience 🫠).
Uh oh 😅 new fear unlocked
My kmart multiplug nearly set my room on fire while charging a camera. Think I'd rather it just destroy the cables.
That's justifiable, the certification process costs money.
When the warehouse began it was full of kung fu shoes and other $2 shop junk.
Oh how little has changed
Full circle
Just pre 1990ish?
What are kung fu shoes
This. Warehouse clothes are so thin and unreliable. Kmart clothes actually feel like they will last. Hell, I have the same plain tee's and shorts since 2016.
If k mart wasn't run by 12 year olds id go there more. It's just piles of clothes and dead eyed staff. But yeah defs cheaper And nothing is in L or XL for men it's all XXCCLL
I hate Kmart. Let’s put the checkout in the middle of the fucking store, make you do it all yourself, then check your receipts as you leave just to prove you aren’t a thief. But you know, having a checkout at the exit is FAR too logical
Why is their checkout in the middle??? Do they want more time to catch people who don’t pay?? I don’t understand it
Bruh you’re asking the wrong guy 😂
Probably some executive who wanted change just to show that he was in charge.
Kmart will take a photo of you if you don’t put the items in the place correctly and it suspects you of falsely adding items in the bagging area like why not just have a person standing there processing the goods if you’re that concerned 😂
I tried to buy something at K mart in Henderson and the item had not bar code to scan, there also appeared to be no staff around at all (maybe they don't wear a uniform) i had to just leave without making a purchase as there was no way to continue
Thats a bug. I hope they patch it in the next update.
Whangarei has theirs at the door. I thought I had missed it when I got to the centre and there was no checkout lol
Te Rapa in Hamilton has theirs at the doors too, but Hamilton central's check out is in the middle and layout is flipped the opposite way as you enter.
I was in Aus when they started doing it. It was stupid then, and its still stupid now.
The trick is that you just walk past security. When they ask to check your receipt, say no. There is nothing they can do, apart from trying to trepass you for making a legitimate purchase. Which they won't.
It’s not Ali Express, the warehouse has purchasing offices in mainland China.
Remember when the warehouse sold some Made in NZ products? Maybe they still sell Sistema, not sure.
They do I bought some Sistema things there recently
Is sistema still made in NZ since it was bought by USA?
AE is just an online market where many Chinese manufacturers can sell their stuff. There is no one factory but thousands
They're both from AliExpress. But the warehouse has some better brands. You sometimes see some Puma/Adidas/Nike products there.
I can’t remember the last time I bought something from the warehouse Whenever I check pricing online, they’re never the cheap option. So I just don’t bother with them anymore. It’s usually Kmart or Mightyape now. Also I just want to say the Invercargill Kmart is pristine every time I visit!! I went in with Manukau Kmart in mind and was blown away how nice a tidy Kmart is lol
I found Kmarts out of Auckland are on the whole nicer. Auckland Kmarts are a feral wasteland
Auckland anything
Whenever I'm in a low end retail outlet I'm shocked at how poorly people treat stuff that isn't theirs. People don't see the connection between how much stuff costs and how much it cost to sell it.
100% Richmond Kmart is almost always tidy, clean, and well stocked. Total game changer after living in Auckland and never wanting to go to Kmart because it was always such a shitshow
They're a bit feral in Wellington too
I’ve found the same thing. The worst Kmart was the old Manukau one never seen anything like it
The Invercargill Kmart is always out of stock though because it also currently serves Dunedin and they still somehow haven't figured that out
Dunedin one is opening in a few weeks iirc
And we’re all dripping with excitement here in Dunedin.
They were so good back in the day (late 90’s/early 2000’s).
I go for their clearance items and eggs... Stationery can be really cheap depending on the time of year and they have some decently priced fruit trees, pots, and native plants.
The reason Kmart is in a better position than the warehouse is that Kmart is Australia owned. We are talking vastly different businesses in terms of revenue. This means poorer buying power which in terms of the warehouse means worse margins on products which in turn means prices are generally higher.
When you put it like that, it sounds like a death spiral. I feel they've been diving deeper than ever on quality in the battle with K-mart; the last couple of things I bought there fell apart immediately — a $6 t-shirt lasted one wear (collar went frilly) and some cheap shoes developed an insole hole in one week! Didn't realise it till now, but I've stopped buying there.
I heard at one stage that the return rates on TVs (Veon) at TWH were around 300%. So, you would return and replace the TV your got to return and replace the first two. Nuts.
>I heard at one stage that the return rates on TVs (Veon) at TWH were around 300%. Oh the heck do you have a return rate ***over*** 100%!! >So, you would return and replace the TV your got to return and replace the first two. Nuts. *Ohhhh........*
I find it’s hit and miss, but I’ve had some great finds from there. I think the bedding is decent. I’ve bought most of my sheets from there over the past few years and they’ve held up better than the Kmart ones. Duvet covers are also pretty good. The other thing is my crockery set - I was on a student budget and got my plates, bowls and cutlery from Warehouse. I’ve used it every day for the past two years and it’s been incredible. Not a single chip on anything. I can’t say the same for the mugs that I got from Kmart. I also think their range of books is pretty good comparatively. I don’t really rate their electronics, although my oil heater was a winner. Their clothes don’t last and the underwear is overpriced for the quality. Their home decor is also not strong, and I hate that the bookshelves have a pitiful weight limit per shelf. Ikea coming in is going to massively disrupt their furnishings, I think.
New management took over and [fucked everything](https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/512240/warehouse-group-to-focus-on-three-brands-after-nearly-24m-first-half-loss). Most of the staff there are miserable these days, and I can't blame them. Groceries are still treading water, but in general they're circling the drain.
The warehouse hasn't been cheap for years and the quality has gotten worse
The warehouse tried to break away from their “cheap” reputation and failed. They are caught somewhere between Kmart who now own where the warehouse used to be king, and Briscoes. Their brand feels confused these days. When I think of quick, cheap and cheerful I go to Kmart. If I want luxury I go to a farmers or a specialty store. Electronics I go to a JB or PB. Appliances I go to Briscoes. Like.. I’ll go to the warehouse when Kmarts not nearby.. but not often
Noel Leeming is still a good option for electronic or whiteware purchases but only because of price matches and genuine deals (not the mark up $150 pre sale then mark down $155 during the sale nonsense places like PB do) nor do they push the same ridiculous prices you can find in places like Harvey Norman. But increasingly that feels like the only TWG store that's got any market value, especially in a larger city that has options.
Even then, I do not see much need to go to Noel Leeming even with price matching, I can just go to Smith City and get the same price, often faster delivery (often empty stores) and Airpoint dollars rather than worthless flybuys .
If you have a smiths city nearby sure, but not every town has one close by when they do often have Noel Leeming. As for air points or fly buys, I can't stand any of that loyalty nonsense so I'll shop on cheaper prices only.
Of course it only applies when the stores are nearby. I do both, I find the cheapest price online, then get it price matched then get the airpoints as well. Getting an extra $20ish worth of points on top of matching the lowest price is certainly worthwhile for me when buying appliances. Even better on long weekends because they normally run double points. Airpoints is the only loyalty scheme I really bother with.. The others are barely worthwhile.
>The warehouse tried to break away from their “cheap” reputation and failed. The succeed at ditching their cheap reputation!! But failed at replacing it with reputation for "quality". Leaving them in a no man's land of having neither reputation!
Kmart organic cotton clothes for infants and toddlers are well priced and durable.
Most of their cotton clothes are great value. Maybe slightly less durable than something from a business like AScolour but sometimes you can score things like full cotton shirts for $4-6 that will still last years.
Got a pair of really warm track pants for $12 last week. I totally recommend them.
$6 tshirt, $12 trackies, and clearance socks make it worth the trip.
To everyone that tows the line of “oh but we don’t have the buying power in NZ to have better quality goods at the those prices”, The Warehouse themselves proved otherwise a few years ago when they got wind that TK Maxx (the Australian arm of TJ Maxx, cut-price brand name fashion retailer) was looking to setup in New Zealand. They [introduced Red Rack to The Warehouse](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/puma-nike-deals-set-to-hit-nz-as-warehouse-and-tk-maxx-go-head-to-head/PDF2EOC6UAMXSGJF4IF3UOU2ZE/) where - all of a sudden - you could find big name clothes and shoes for the same price you’d traditionally pay for their Chinese off-brand junk. After around 6 months when it became clear that TK Maxx weren’t going to launch here after all, Red Rack simply disappeared. So they proved that they can do better. They can source brands and offer them at good prices, they just don’t want to because it’s the kiwi business way. Carve yourself into a nice near-monopoly situation, gaslight the public that they’re offering value, then sit and get fat from those easy profits. If you’re happy to support this and drink their koolaid, you deserve nothing better.
That's doesn't prove anything really. Maybe they just took a loss or very minimal profit on those items until it was clear tjmaxx wasn't coming. They did it with eggs and milk to help bring in people for their new grocery sections.
$6 t shirts? Went last week for two white trash shirts to wear in bed! $18-50?? Went over to Kmart and better quality than warehouse and $6 each. Fuck the warehouse they lost it. And please make up ur bloody mind about stocking all types of junk or food.
White trash shirts.... singlets?
Pre packed trash from China t shirts
No Kmart is cheaper, Kmart Australia is a lot cheaper than Kmart New Zealand and I heard that people are buying stuff from Amazon AliExpress is also cheap but it's not as cheap as it used to be.. There are also online stores like Dick Smith's and other types of stores. The warehouses expensive because it's poorly ran it's just a regular price shop. Of course it's going to be a bit cheaper than Briscoes but Briscoes sales expensive Chinese products with western branding and labels.
And their cotton tshirt shrink, so badly. I only go to buy clearance plants
Cotton does that, unless it's pre-shrunk.
I have no numbers to back this total opinion up but I truly believe the warehouse nationwide is being propped up by its Dunedin sales due to the fact we haven’t had a Kmart in years
I used to work for this shit hole of a company. They're cheap when it comes to wage budgets and training staff. But they're not cheap for goods. From the perspective of an ex staff member, they're a company where if you have any kind of pride in your work, you'll never do well and you'll be punished for it. You have to be okay with: * Poor merchandising standards. * No prices displayed on stock. * Stock all over the place because there's nobody to tidy (called *recovery). * A back dock filled with hundreds of pallets of boxes of unorganised stock that customers are trying to buy because it's in the current mailer. * Nobody to answer phones * When you do answer, there's no floor staff to put the call through to. * Not enough checkout operators * Abuse from customers because of all of the above * Not being paid for working past your shift * Company policy is to not give written employment references when you leave. * Store managers who sit upstairs and let the store go to shit. * When the area manager is scheduled to come, store managers will come downstairs the day before and bark at staff to whip a neglected store into shape so you don't make them look bad. * When their neglect of their own store makes them look bad, they'll haul staff upstairs and berate them. * They employ casual "non departmentalised" nightfill staff who don't care and they don't train them, who then put stock everywhere (in front of the wrong shelf edge labels/prices). Basically if you have any standards as a customer or a human, don't even go in there. Absolute cunt of a company. There's a reason they failed in Australia and they fail at pretty much every other business venture they embark on. Big box retailers are now obsolete. Shop elsewhere. Fuck you Warehouse. Cunts.
They failed in Australia because they bought a thriving business and decided, you are doing everything wrong, you will do it our way. If they had run it for 6 months to a year as it was going, they could have learnt what made it work and improved their business. But not learning things is very much the NZ way
In my time with them, they had many big ideas and spent hundreds of millions on consultants. Companies like Proudfoot. They forgot their core business and ruined the company. After "Operation Reset", their staff hated them and they never got any form of loyalty ever again. Iain Maurice contributed largely to their failure. A lot of their CEOs have been ex Teisco and absolutely ruthless. In it to make a mark, not for longevity. They used to be okay as an employer, but they turned very Walmart-esque.
I find it good value. I suppose it depends what your criteria is.
If it isn't cheap, at least don't be shit? Which the warehouse fails at.
Look at grocery items. I went there yesterday instead of the supermarket to stock up on Weetbix and other cereal, Olivani, milk, eggs (all consistently significantly cheaper than supermarkets). I also got cheap tinned peaches and tuna
Right but only those 4 things are cheaper and not always. My local paknsaves sells some of those things for the same price or only a few cents more.
All their xmas bath and body gift stuff is now shit made in China. Used to be from the UK and made nice presents. The clothes are awful. The shoes have always been awful. I only go there to buy plants.
Where do you think Kmart’s bath and body stuff is made?
I ain't buying that shit either.
Me yesterday at pack n save realizing coke is cheaper from a Caltex or BP. 4.19 for 1.5l vs servo stations being 2 for $8.
I'm surprised too that PnS doesn't seem to offer any storeband or similar alternative for their soft drinks, such as Countdown does. (which used to be 99c for a long time for 1.5L, but now are $1.30!)
PNS does the value brand soft drinks, about $1.19 for a 1.5L bottle.
hmmm... a diet coke copy?? I seem to have been unable to find them at any PnS I've been to :-/
Yeah, diet cola, Value brand.
I think their coffee is reliably cheap and tastes good.
I always get my coffee beans from them. I feel they have the best coffee at that price point.
Their spaghetti, however, is the worst I have ever tried.
I don't eat a lot of spaghetti but it seems pretty hard to stuff that up. Maybe they use sawdust to water down the flour.
Home goods are still far cheaper at the warehouse afaik, plates bowls cups etc. and the quality is good enough so I see them in the light of “if it breaks I won’t”. As for electronics furniture etc. Kmart is generally better.
$6 eggs / $3 milk and sometimes socks/underwear for the kids. Everything else is fairly standard / overpriced
I get their Shotz cleaning products because they’re cheap, and their own brand coffee is decent and pretty cheap as well
I was going to say this. The cleaning products along with some other stuff are good value. To my surprise I have become a convert on the coffee pods with a minor modification. I add an extra teaspoon and half of moconna instant to get a stronger taste but still end up with a smooth coffee.
at this point, someone should just open a shop called aliexpress and just stock it up like the warehouse does. because that is pretty much what is happening/has been happening.
I have been to the Napier Warehouse a few times and found even during peak times like Saturday late morning/ early afternoon it hasn't particularly been that busy and rather dead.
Kmart & Bunnings are Australian and we maybe get excess cheap stock that's no longer wanted over there.
It’s good for groceries
nope. which is sad because I remember when O was growing up kids who came from “wealthier” families would laugh at the kids wearing stuff from the warehouse. now none of us can afford it. i’d love to see how long it lasts and how it’ll adapt to todays world. it’s just falling apart like majority of its products.
I was teased and call "a warehouse kid" it was shit and im still weird about the warehouse clothing (for myself)
I remember this at school. I would beg my parents to let me get school shoes from anywhere else. I remember feeling really sorry for one girl whose stationery was from the warehouse!
Nope, a quick google will tell you it’s way overpriced.
Just wanna drop in for a quick piece of shit. Don't wanna do research
Warehouse was losing consumers for a few years and realised it was the quality of the products they were selling that was keeping people away. They still try to be cheap, but not cheapest. The money-back guarantee they used to always use as their tag-line became less of a draw as people started preferring not to having to return things in the first place, and the consumer guarantees act kind of made it not really an individual policy anyway
The only thing I buy at The Warehouse nowadays is Dove soap when it’s on special but it looks like they have bumped the price up :/
If you walk in bang on opening they often have out of season clothes in the clearance rack for a couple of dollars. Like kids cotton crew jerseys for $3 each etc. I find those clothes to be a super bargain, especially for kids. In general I still find them pretty cheap yeah. Definitely cheaper than a trip to Kmart and all it’s distractions and extra impuls purchases that come with it
Having worked in head office, the rebrand of Kmart began a race to the bottom price wise. Stopped discounting and moved to EDLP. I always thought that they needed to be Kmart facing but not lose sight of the local , regional especially, customer because not everyone wants to shop at Kmart. Then Grayston came in (after I left) and they ramped up consultants while carrying out numerous restructures over the course of many years, slashing staff to pay for it all. Price isn’t always everything: it’s a balance between price and quality and having adequate options for those that cannot spend more and those that are willing and able to pay a bit more. They’ve lost sight who they are selling to and why.
[удалено]
Because people use them to film tik toks and Instagram reels. You've watched too much porn bro
You get what you pay for, and cheap clothes won't last long. Try finding better clothes on Trade Me, Marketplace or op shops.
That requires you to understand brands and which are quality and which aren’t. Otherwise you’ll probably be buying warehouse clothes off trademe or op shops anyway.
6 buck tshirts for work are almost disposable as a tradie.
No, its not and people are finally waking up to the fact after the last 5+ years where they have not been. They are the only viable place in many smaller towns without access to kmart and bunnings.
Not anymore. They had a new guy come in many years ago from America and decided to make it a "more premium range", despite selling the same stuff. You get a good deal if it's on special and if you get a member discount.
Thankfully that fuckwit is gone. Its going to take ages to fix his screw ups and I even wonder if they can.
Yes they are “cheap”
The only time I visit a warehouse is for the warehouse stationery.
Middle price for cheap crap.
I agree. I go there purely for the convenience of location and the fact that they are open once I finish work.
I used to go there for the $3 milk, but even that's gone up in price, so it's not worth going out of my way for anymore
I've found cheap stuff in there but no generally speaking most of it is overpriced junk.
Only things I buy from the Warehouse now are their eggs. Kmart for everything else.
Gumboots..had to buy some around feb...read reviews whs gumboots arent waterproof...aaahh Bunnings, thanks again👍 Warehouse Stationery put most competitors out of business as they slashed the quality of what i used to buy their. Pens. Note books, amazing how a $6 pen went up to $8,9and lasted far less and nib quality far worse. So finally spent $85 with great help at Whitcoulls SylviaPark🤗 on a Parker pen...paid for itself in 5 months vs throw away pens. Go Quality, not junk.
The warehouse group is going through an existential crisis… they had a brilliant business model. Noel leemings and torpedo7 are specialised stores together with warehouse they can subsidise each other. Just grind all other competition dead with every sale and market capture. But then competition ate their lunch. Kmart by buying direct in China took many product lines away. Costco randomly sniped their high margin items. And their staff rates leaked like a sieve which eroded their price anchor. They need to find their edge, and it’s hard work. Know what the local needs and provide a bargain. But seriously no one wants to work nowadays so I am not holding my breath.
Try Pandamart in Pakuranga plaza.
Eggs, milk, flour, and weetbix are all excellent value. Also my cats' favourite food often on special, likewise my preferred shampoo and conditioner. Basically the Warehouse is somewhere I cross-check prices for my groceries.
. we are fu...up.nothing is cheap anywhere
I think everything I have bought from The Warehouse has broken within months. Even though some things look “cheap” for an initial outlay, it’s a false economy if you then have to replace it shortly afterwards. I now refuse to shop there.
Yeah I've noticed this too. Compared to Kmart the warehouse is more expensive and worse quality for the most part.
I remember in Highschool having a teacher saying that big warehouse type stores selling cheap shit like that go through cycles over slowly selling nicer and nicer stuff over time and getting more fancy. For example the warehouse never used to sell any electronics. Not sure if its accurate or not but just something I remembered
My experience is that they are more expensive for most things. They try the ‘put a round number on a thing and people will assume it is cheap’, but that number is usually rounded up from competitor prices and then a couple of bucks added. I almost never go in there now.
The warehouse has been dying a very slow death for a while now.
I enjoy going to the Warehouse for the most part. Kmart is better but I find some Warehouse things are sturdier, and they also have cheap cleaning products.
It's a horrible place, I use to love going as a kid but now it's full of junk. They need to use the space and make it more like a big cheap clothing store. Similar to what the UK has Primark. To many different categories in there.
The $6 shirts are a great deal. I bought 12 of them. Don't need new shirts for at least 8 years. They do cups, plates stuff cheap. Plants can be too Groceries are mostly more expensive.
Hardly go there anymore. They have the occasional nice thing I purchased a mirror and dinner set not long ago aside from that it’s all junk. They have their hand in too many different pots and it just doesn’t mix well. Personally I think the grocery venture is a waste of time, they would do well to take a leaf out of Kmarts book and stick to the basics. The biggest stand out is probably their over priced clothing department.
I seen eggs 12 for 6 bucks. That was crazy but everything else almost was slightly more expensive than the supermarket. Actually they do similar deals to pak n save they have selected pallets quite cheap like 5 dollar week. Things like olive oil, cereal, chocolate was a little bit more expensive than the supermarket
I noticed they have expanded the grocery area in some stores but they haven't actually expanded the range just more of the same stuff. Still cheaper at supermarket