It feels like Solomon Lew is playing a game of international retail chess as his strategy to move the brand pieces becomes clearer.
The move to spin off pyjama group Peter Alexander and kid stationery chain Smiggle into separately listed companies is the enabler for international hyper-expansion.
Lew’s end game appears to go beyond just growing these Australian businesses internationally. It is a plan to establish each as a global brand.
Solomon Lew believes Smiggle and Peter Alexander have greater value as separate entities.Credit: Eamon Gallagher
He mentions the extraordinary colonising success of brands such as Zara and Tommy Hilfiger, and then explains that the UK has been scoped and readied for Peter Alexander’s entry, while announcing plans to have 100 Smiggle stores in Indonesia in the coming years.
Liberated from Lew’s mothership company, Premier Investments, Peter Alexander and Smiggle can expedite their growth plans and raise their own funds to do it.
The theory goes that when separated, these businesses will attract higher values than they currently do within the Premier brand conglomerate.
Lew’s end game appears to go beyond just growing these Australian businesses internationally. It is a plan to establish each as global brands.
We saw some of this re-rating on Tuesday when Premier’s share price immediately jumped 9 per cent on the news of the brand demerger. Some of the enthusiasm can also be attributed to Premier’s earnings reported alongside the spin-off plans exceeding market expectations.
A notable absence in the geographic plans for Smiggle and Peter Alexander is America, but Lew certainly won’t rule it out. That is likely part of the next leg of global growth.
Spin off and conquer: Solly Lew’s global plan for Smiggle and Peter Alexander
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26.03.2024
It feels like Solomon Lew is playing a game of international retail chess as his strategy to move the brand pieces becomes clearer.
The move to spin off pyjama group Peter Alexander and kid stationery chain Smiggle into separately listed companies is the enabler for international hyper-expansion.
Lew’s end game appears to go beyond just growing these Australian businesses internationally. It is a plan to establish each as a........
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