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 AUSTRALIA
FRANCHISE NEWS ARCHIVE
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: : Jul-Dec 2003
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Restaurants doing it tough. Australians are dining
out more and spending more but restaurants, especially in New South
Wales, are still doing it tough, according to a report. .... [more]
14/12/03
Caltex dealers seek QC advice. Hundreds of Caltex franchisees
left out in the cold by the oil giant's deal with Woolworths will
decide today whether to take legal action over their plight. ....
[more]
4/12/03
Brumby's ready to list on Bendigo exchange. Bakery franchise
operator Brumby's is set to list on the Bendigo Stock Exchange tomorrow
as it begins a five-year expansion plan that will increase the number
of its stores across Australia and New Zealand by up to 80 per cent.
.... [more]
4/12/03
Australian Caltex-Woolworths alliance draws wrath of franchises.
Caltex petrol station franchise operators are reportedly poised
to take legal action against the company as a result of its co-branded
alliance with retailer Woolworths. .... [more]
4/12/03
Singing a different tune. Tired of playing second fiddle
to the likes of John Farnham and Kate Ceberano, Jenny Wilkinson bought
a franchise that teaches music to pre-schoolers nearly 10 years ago
and now she plays any instrument she likes. .... [more]
2/12/03
Gerry Harvey's pay to be doubled. Harvey Norman Holdings
Ltd shareholders voted in favour of doubling chief executive Gerry
Harvey's earnings packet to $500,000. .... [more]
25/11/03
Harvey Norman 'fails' governance. A comprehensive study
of corporate governance at the top 250 listed companies has found
that while many talk the talk, few are walking the more stringent
standards since the collapse of One.Tel, HIH, Harris Scarfe and US
energy giant Enron. .... [more]
10/11/03
Franchise lobby fracas. Moves to establish a lobby group
for franchisees have been thrown into confusion by a family dispute
over who coined the idea. .... [more]
4/11/03
Norman feasts as Woolies hits mark. Serial stock market
investor Gerry Harvey yesterday revealed he had picked up several
million dollars worth of shares in Woolworths as the supermarket giant
hit its first-quarter sales target and talked up a promising Christmas
season. .... [more]
28/10/03
Gerry, Katie target $21m share deal. Harvey Norman Holdings
chief Gerry Harvey will double his pay packet if shareholders approve
a proposal to be put forward at the retailer's annual meeting next
month. .... [more]
24/10/03
Harvey au go go. Go Harvey, go Harvey, go Harvey Norman,
go! Now that you've got that irritating jingle in your head for the
day. .... [more]
24/10/03
Float music to Harvey's ears. Retailer and investor
Gerry Harvey has emerged as one of the many backers of JB Hi-Fi's
$150 million float, and is already reaping the benefits as the stock
shattered its issue price on the Australian Stock Exchange yesterday.
.... [more]
24/10/03
Harvey bucks salary cap. Senior executives of Harvey
Norman are in line for big pay increases under a new remuneration
policy to be unveiled by the retailer this week amid rising concerns
over companies' remuneration practices. .... [more]
20/10/03
Franchise cleans up at awards. John and Jenny Brown
cleaned up at the recent Electrodry conference on the Gold Coast.
.... [more]
17/10/03
Retailer laps up a sales bonanza. Harvey Norman showed
yesterday its days as a growth stock are far from over with the retailer
pulling out unexpectedly strong sales in the first quarter. .... [more]
14/10/03
It's 'Go Harvey, go' as sales soar. Sales of digital
cameras, new-generation mobile phones and computer laptops helped
fuel a surprisingly strong 22 per cent jump in first-quarter sales
at Harvey Norman stores, raising investors' hopes of a higher full-year
profit. .... [more]
14/10/03
Harvey Norman team set for 'wonderful' deal. Three months
after institutional investors short-circuited Gerry Harvey's plan
to cut the exercise price of Harvey Norman executive options, the
chairman of the franchise retailer has formulated a new share plan
to reward senior staff. .... [more]
8/10/03
Eating fresh brings franchise rewards. Jim Ainsworth
has been “eating fresh” for more than three years and it
has paid off, with the North East Subway franchisee named the Franchisee
of the Year. .... [more]
7/10/03
Franchise boom sign of the time. Franchise business
is booming with growth rates around 9 per cent and the survival rate
far outstripping independent start-up small businesses, latest figures
show. .... [more]
28/9/03
Sam's turns up heat in kitchen. Queensland fishmonger
Sam's Seafood Holdings is set to open 20 fast food franchises in Australia
over the next year before expanding into London and New York. ....
[more]
27/9/03
Brambles CEO resigns. Brambles Industries chief executive
Sir C.K. Chow has quit his position, leaving chief financial officer
David Turner to step up to the top job. .... [more]
26/9/03
Brazin turns up volume on local retail plans. Music
and lingerie retailer Brazin will spend $10 million expanding its
local retail presence after making a killing on the sale of its British
music business. .... [more]
23/9/03
Revamped Harvey rides out travel woes. If you are running
a travel company, the past few years have been more than a little
testing. .... [more]
18/9/03
ABC Learning on acquisition alert. Child care centre
operator ABC Learning will top up its burgeoning war chest with bank
debt to fund its aggressive acquisition strategy over the next two
years as it consolidates its position as one of the largest operators
in Australia. .... [more]
15/9/03
Breaking free of takeover. A confident BreakFree has
boasted to its shareholders it has fought off the advances of aggressive
takeover suitor S8 Ltd. .... [more]
15/9/03
Record year for Harvey Norman. Harvey Norman Holdings
expects further sales gains this year after the furniture and electrical
retailer posted a record annual earnings result on Friday. .... [more]
13/9/03
ABC Learning in NSW growth spurt. Australia's
biggest child-care company ABC Learning Centres yesterday placed a
further piece in its growth puzzle with the purchase of 40 child-care
centres, mainly in metropolitan Sydney. .... [more]
10/9/03
Golden goal in sight for Cash Converters.
Second-hand goods seller and pawnbroker Cash Converters International
is predicting a bright future after turning around a previous heavy
loss to post a net profit of $2.8 million for 2002-03. .... [more]
9/9/03
Brumby's in $2.6m share buyback. Brisbane-based bakery
franchise Brumby's yesterday announced the $2.6 million buyback of
nearly a quarter of the company's shares from major shareholder Burns
Philp. .... [more]
5/9/03
Chow for chop on Chep? Brambles chief executive Sir
C.K. Chow may lose his final lifeline as concerns mount that cost
blowouts in the Chep USA pallet business will require the company
to slash earnings forecasts for the sixth time in two years. ....
[more]
5/9/03
S8 to take BreakFree case to Takeovers Panel. Resort
manager S8 Ltd will appeal to the Takeovers Panel today to allow its
bidder's statement to be released after its target, BreakFree, accused
it of being factually incorrect. .... [more]
5/9/03
Unpalatable result for Brambles. Brambles again tested
the mettle of its shareholders yesterday, forecasting a weak first
half for the current year after reporting a 39 per cent slump in net
profit in the year to June 30. .... [more]
3/9/03
Brambles recovery slug. Pallets maker Brambles Industries
today booked a 40 per cent drop in annual net profit to $330 million
on the back of its European operations restructure and declines in
north American business. .... [more]
2/9/03
Angry S8 queries unit deal. The BreakFree versus S8
Limited takeover ordeal could be back before the Takeovers Panel after
the target company released an expanded franchise strategy which contains
another alleged "poison pill". .... [more]
1/9/03
Troubled Brazin seeks Sanity. Lingerie and music retailer
Brazin is attempting to lift its sagging fortunes with a change of
focus and a series of cost-cutting measures. .... [more]
22/8/03
Brazin result slump. Shares in Brazin rose today after
the niche retailer announced it would find $9 million in bottom line
cost savings by June 2004. .... [more]
21/8/03
Bosses' $220m bid for Freedom. Senior executives of
furniture seller Freedom Group have proposed a $220 million debt-financed
buy-out, just as they push the retailer into what they say will be
a riskier phase of expansion in overseas markets. .... [more]
20/8/03
Brambles wins case on CHEP ownership. Brambles Industries
has emerged victorious from a two-year legal action where a United
States recycler tried to claim ownership of some of its pallets. ....
[more]
19/8/03
Franchises go boom. It's boom time for Australia's food
franchise operations. Many big chains report more than 50 per cent
growth in the past year. .... [more]
17/8/03
BreakFree heads off intervention. Takeover target BreakFree
has terminated the sale of four key assets to family members and company
associates to head off further intervention by the Takeovers Panel.
.... [more]
15/8/03
Fantastic reaction to 56% rise. Shares in discount furniture
retailer Fantastic Holdings soared more than 10 per cent yesterday
after the company posted strong profit results for 2002-03. .... [more]
14/8/03
Brambles falters as US executives depart. A recovery
by Brambles's CHEP pallet business is again in doubt as the company
confirmed it had lost another two senior executives in the US, leaving
the problem-plagued division under a new management team. .... [more]
8/8/03
Brazin's founder hands over reins. Music and lingerie
retailer Brazin has appointed a new chief executive, as founder Brett
Blundy takes a back seat amid continuing uncertainty over the company's
latest venture into UK surfwear and footwear. .... [more]
6/8/03
McDonald's looks for a low-fat fix to boost sales. McDonald's
this week will launch a $6.2 million advertising blitz - one of its
biggest marketing campaigns of any company this year - to publicise
its new low-fat menu. .... [more]
6/8/03
ANZ set to sell rural franchises. ANZ Bank is eyeing
the $28 billion farm finance sector, offering the sale of rural banking
franchises nationwide. .... [more]
5/8/03
Fresh, and so is the chicken. Oporto founder and director
Antonio Cerqueira can be as fresh as his produce when he is selling
the special qualities that have made his Bondi chicken burger famous
in Sydney. .... [more]
1/8/03
Kiwi hairstylist confident he's a cut above. Australian
hair fashionistas will soon be able to judge the country's best cutters
against a New Zealand chain that boasts big claims. .... [more]
28/7/03
BreakFree, S8 locked in fierce battle. The gloves are
off and it's becoming a bare knuckle dust up for two Queensland companies
eyeing each other off. .... [more]
28/7/03
No go for Harvey option deal. Gerry Harvey, founder
and executive chairman of Harvey Norman, has caved in to pressure
from major investors and abandoned his controversial executive options
plan. .... [more]
22/7/03
RELATED - Small biz outlook bullish. Small business
in Australia was strongly confident about the economic outlook, with
a majority expecting interest rates would rise in the next 12 months,
an inaugural survey shows. .... [more]
22/7/03
Brazin to detail 160-store UK foray. Troubled music
and lingerie retailer Brazin expects to open as many as 160 shoe and
surfwear retail shops across the United Kingdom in an effort to regain
its growth path. .... [more]
21/7/03
Brazin bid to follow fashion. Struggling lingerie and
music retailer Brazin could be rolling out its own street and surfwear
chain by the end of the year. .... [more]
17/7/03
Boost Juice blends a success that's overflowing. A beverage
group with a Body Shop-style culture is now contemplating a stockmarket
listing. .... [more]
15/7/03
Tutoring franchisor aims for a textbook expansion. Tutoring
has become big business as parents try to give their children an edge.
.... [more]
12/7/03
Harvey faces showdown over executive options. ING Investment
Management yesterday joined the chorus of disapproval of an executive
options deal to be put to Harvey Norman's shareholders later this
month, declaring it would vote against it. .... [more]
5/7/03
Harvey to face ASA over proposed executive options.
Gerry Harvey, executive chairman and founder of Harvey Norman, will
meet the Australian Shareholders' Association next week to discuss
objections to his proposed executive share option issue. .... [more]
4/7/03
Cold Rock on a roll. The Brisbane-controlled ice cream
retailer Cold Rock has unleashed an aggressive expansion plan to triple
its number of stores outside of Queensland. .... [more]
3/7/03
'Bully' Harvey's price cut a sellout. The Australian
Shareholders Association called Harvey Norman chief Gerry Harvey a
"social bully" yesterday for attempting to cut the exercise price
of out-of-the-money options held by his top executives. .... [more]
3/7/03
Chain to double its pizza action. Pizza chain Domino's
says it plans to double its Australian and New Zealand store numbers
over the next five years. .... [more]
2/7/03
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