Cotton On Group expands mega stores: Is this mimicking other brands?

The head of retail at youth brands network Cotton On Group says apparel is no longer king. But as the company focuses on opening more “mega stores” encompassing all of its lifestyle brands, one expert warns price is still the most important factor in capturing consumers.

Natalie McLean, who heads up retail strategy at the nation’s third largest privately owned retailer, has told Fairfax this week that many categories other than clothing have been outperforming for the retailer.

Despite this, the company’s focus will be expanding its network of one-stop shops. These include products from the company’s imprints Cotton On, Cotton On Body, rubi shoes and Typo.

There are currently 90 mega-stores in Australia, as well as sites in Malaysia, New Zealand and South Africa. McLean told Fairfax Cotton On will close up standalone stores when leases finish in favour of opening new mega-store formats in future.

The news comes as other bricks-and-mortar stalwarts announce radical changes to their floor designs. Last week, department store Myer shared news that it would be trialing ‘off price’ discount floors within some of its stores to capture bargain-hunting shoppers. Read more

Emma Koehn - Smart Company - 18 Sep 2017