Retail giant goes headlong into new home stores venture with US giant Lowe’s, could rival Harvey Norman.
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The new Masters stores, which will pose as DIY stores will also sell white good appliances, a spokesperson confirmed to Channel News.
“We are hoping to provide a new offering in the home improvement sector, selling large items as well as goods for customers homes,” he added.
The new retail joint venture between Woolworths and Lowe’s is looking to get a share of the lucrative DIY sector, worth $42 billion annually, and say the “category is ripe for a new name.’
US based DIY specialists Lowe’s, sell brands like Samsung, Whirlpool and Bosch, and go by the slogan “lets build something together.”
The Masters stores will offer more than 35,000 DIY goods include lighting, paint, kitchens and outdoor furniture and could hit Harvey Norman in particular, who are the household name in appliances and kitchen categories as well as other players like The Good Guys.
It will also be the first time such a diverse group of categories will be sold in a single location, it said in a statement today.
The Masters first store will open at Braybrook, Melbourne later this year, with a 13,500 sq-metre outlet “with a separate trade-only area dedicated to the building and professional industries.”
Other stores will soon follow in other parts of Victoria and Queensland and are looking to blitz the nation, aiming for locations in 150 sites within five years.
With just a few months to go until opening, we’re putting the finishing touches to our plans and we are confident that our customers will be as excited as we are when they visit for the first time,” said Masters CEO Don Stallings.
And its not just a run of the mill DIY shop – “we are offering products, value and service that will really excite our customers about improving their home and quality of living,” added.
And considering all the furore about online e-tailing of late, the new venture is looking to add to the customer retail experience, with highly trained staff and air conditioned, comfortable stores, which they are hoping will differentiate it from rivals.
