Originally Posted by
Sideshow Bob
I see one of the questions will be in tougher economic times (inflation, rising interest rates, fuel costs etc) whether punters will "trade down" to the Warehouse, who would have normally spent at other chains stores/malls etc.
Kmart is their main competitor, and from what I see are a pretty good operation, quite smart stores and a really good offering. I find it hard to get enthuiastic going into a red shed - literally, shoot me now if the missus grads me in one!!
But in the South Island, there are only 5 KMarts - there are towns like Timaru, Oamaru, Ashburton, Dunedin, Blenheim where the Warehouse has much lesser competition.
As for Briscoes trading at a higher PE, I think a proven track record accounts for most of that.