Bunnings v Masters

[Adamz Ghia]

I wonder if Woolies ever approached Metcash about getting in with them with Mitre 10. It has brand value and surely would have been easier to build from.

[AJ09]

Originally Posted by Adamz Ghia

I wonder if Woolies ever approached Metcash about getting in with them with Mitre 10. It has brand value and surely would have been easier to build from.

There was talk of that prior to them purchasing Danks however the ACCC wouldn't allow it.

[SYZ]

Originally Posted by iCat

I waited for service for 20 mins at bunnings carrum downs yesterday before I walked out in disgust & drove round the corner to masters to be served immediately. Communication is the key to disgruntled customers.

And this comment sums up nicely one of the main reasons Masters has fallen over... location and/or visibility.
Driving along Frankston-Dandy Rd you'll see Bunnings right on the main drag, with Masters "hidden" away off Lathams Rd (sort of behind Bunnings).

Incidentally, I've never waited more than 5 minutes at at any/all Bunnings stores for customer service. Obviously YMMV.

[Crazy Dazz]

My wife works for Masters.
IMHO Masters' Business Model was fundamentally flawed.
They decided not to stock a lot of big brand items, such as Dulux paint. Can you imagine, a hardware store without Dulux paint? That's like a servo not selling petrol.
They also have a mish-mashed range, whitegoods, microwaves and vacuums on the one hand, then rugs, cushions, and lamps, on the other. So they've tried to expand their range, but it has mostly just created problems for them.
And the way they run their stores is just bizarre. They quite literally lose $,000's every day to theft because they won't employ security staff, and I'd reckon they lose a lot of sales because their stores are understaffed at the busiest times.

[LTDHO]

Originally Posted by SYZ

And this comment sums up nicely one of the main reasons Masters has fallen over... location and/or visibility.
Driving along Frankston-Dandy Rd you'll see Bunnings right on the main drag, with Masters "hidden" away off Lathams Rd (sort of behind Bunnings).

Incidentally, I've never waited more than 5 minutes at at any/all Bunnings stores for customer service. Obviously YMMV.

Masters was there first, however Bunnings had purchased their site well before hand. But Masters had years to dominate and failed. IMO.

Same in Cranbourne, Masters is hidden behind Bunnings. There is no way they can compete.

[nstg8a]

Same in Springfield too, masters built first and it seemed to really stand out at the top of the hill as you came in on the motorway, then Bunnings opened right next door. Building looks like triple the size and of course it's the first one you see now from the motorway. Doesn't help that trees have grown which hides masters a bit more.

On the home home hardware front, we got told today of another three in Brisbane area shutting down. There's already been 3-4 shut in the last 8-9 months.

[LG17]

Went to both Masters and Bunnings in Caboolture today. Needed to by 10 bags of cement. Both stores had everything but. Bunnings couldn't care less and the young guy at Masters made a phone call and said it should be here in 2 hours. It was and I bought it from them. I was talking to some truckies at Bunnings (went there first as I passed it first) and their opinions of Bunnings, the attitudes and the quality of stock was unprintable. Supposedly the day to day running costs of Masters are low enough to make a trading profit - it's all the set up costs and American decisions that have them in trouble.

[The Yeti]

Originally Posted by LG17

Went to both Masters and Bunnings in Caboolture today. Needed to by 10 bags of cement. Both stores had everything but. Bunnings couldn't care less and the young guy at Masters made a phone call and said it should be here in 2 hours. It was and I bought it from them. I was talking to some truckies at Bunnings (went there first as I passed it first) and their opinions of Bunnings, the attitudes and the quality of stock was unprintable. Supposedly the day to day running costs of Masters are low enough to make a trading profit - it's all the set up costs and American decisions that have them in trouble.

I was building some balustrades for my back deck and wanted to match it to what the builder had done originally, I went to bunnings (as the local Miter 10 wasn't open as I was driving through they had everything except the bottom rail, they looked on their price list and said my rail had been discontinued recently so I would have to by the rail they stocked.

I wasn't happy with that so I didn't buy anything. the next day I went to the miter 10 they had it all as well and again except for the bottom rail.

The BIG difference however was he asked me how much I wanted, I said I only needed 6 lengths, he made a phone call to the supplier and asked if they still had any, wow and behold they had 1 sling left (I don't know how many lengths are in a sling) he ordered the 6 (and the rest of the stuff I was after to make it a viable order) and it was delivered in time for the weekend, and the really good thing. the price was about 15% cheaper than bunnings on the items they carried and the bottom rail I wanted was closer to 45% cheaper than the bunnings incorrect alternative bottom rail

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by vztrt

Noticed that as well. Unfortunately if they go it'll go back to the old days of their rubbish.

I hope someone can actually save some of the masters stores. Location was their only problem (like the rest of the bit player in this area) but their setup and range was actually better then Bunnings.

It will happen again because there will be no competition for them.

I liked Masters but it was in a bad location in Sunbury, if you were heading to a hardware store coming through Sunbury, Bunnings was the first one you see, Masters was 1km up the road from Bunnings, there was always no one there.

[malazn mafia]

Originally Posted by Crazy Dazz

My wife works for Masters.
IMHO Masters' Business Model was fundamentally flawed.
They decided not to stock a lot of big brand items, such as Dulux paint. Can you imagine, a hardware store without Dulux paint? That's like a servo not selling petrol.
They also have a mish-mashed range, whitegoods, microwaves and vacuums on the one hand, then rugs, cushions, and lamps, on the other. So they've tried to expand their range, but it has mostly just created problems for them.
And the way they run their stores is just bizarre. They quite literally lose $,000's every day to theft because they won't employ security staff, and I'd reckon they lose a lot of sales because their stores are understaffed at the busiest times.

Walked into Aldi many years ago and they didn't stock big brand items. Walking into a supermarket that didn't sell Kellogs Cornflakes was quite a revelation. Also a lack of security staff. Seems to be frequented by the elderly and unemployed, and closes early. Wonder how Aldi keeps afloat?

[Giant Cranium]

Originally Posted by malazn mafia

Walked into Aldi many years ago and they didn't stock big brand items. Walking into a supermarket that didn't sell Kellogs Cornflakes was quite a revelation. Also a lack of security staff. Seems to be frequented by the elderly and unemployed, and closes early. Wonder how Aldi keeps afloat?

Aldi is a great shop. Open late and has all the basics. A lot of the products are Australian made

[SYZ]

I really can't believe that Masters is still running this employment offer...

Work For Us
Want to work for a nationwide company that provides on-the-job training, terrific employee incentives and a variety of positions that suit a wide range of career paths? Look no further than Masters Home Improvement for your next big move.

Masters is a joint venture between Woolworths Limited, the second largest employer in Australia and Lowes Home Improvement. We have grown from 0 to 50 stores in less than 3 years so there is a huge range of career opportunities available from casual sales associates to key leadership roles.

We need top talent like you to come and help us build our business to be the number one choice in Home Improvement in Australia. We love to give opportunities to people with potential and watch their careers grow.

There are roles available for people just starting out in retail to those with extensive home improvement experience. You must be passionate about providing our customers with outstanding service and love being challenged every single day.

—I'm guessing the major everyday challenge would be looking for another job as soon as you get one with Masters LOL.

[LG17]

Originally Posted by SYZ

I really can't believe that Masters is still running this employment offer...

Work For Us
Want to work for a nationwide company that provides on-the-job training, terrific employee incentives and a variety of positions that suit a wide range of career paths? Look no further than Masters Home Improvement for your next big move.

Masters is a joint venture between Woolworths Limited, the second largest employer in Australia and Lowes Home Improvement. We have grown from 0 to 50 stores in less than 3 years so there is a huge range of career opportunities available from casual sales associates to key leadership roles.

We need top talent like you to come and help us build our business to be the number one choice in Home Improvement in Australia. We love to give opportunities to people with potential and watch their careers grow.

There are roles available for people just starting out in retail to those with extensive home improvement experience. You must be passionate about providing our customers with outstanding service and love being challenged every single day.

—I'm guessing the major everyday challenge would be looking for another job as soon as you get one with Masters LOL.

What do you expect them to do ?
Run an ad saying we don't need employees because we might be closing down?

[cainobaggins]

Heaps of friends at masters facing unemployment now

[SYZ]

Originally Posted by LG17

What do you expect them to do ?
Run an ad saying we don't need employees because we might be closing down?

Of course not. Duh. Masters should not be running any ads for new staff at all—considering they're gonna be progressively laying off around 7,000 current staff in the short- to mid-term (to save on their wages bill).

This ad is nothing more than blatant misrepresentation meant, presumably, to create a false sense of confidence in any future buyout. Whatever happens down the track, there's no way Woolies are gonna find a buyer(s) for all 63 stores. And would you waste your time applying for a job with Masters right now? Apparently so.

[EB#]

I needed just a few wingnuts one day....
Masters price up at about $2 each from their dementing "drawer and individual plastic bag system" - Effing eff that.
Walked over to Bunnings (next door) and grabbed a pack of 8 from the rack for about $3.50.

That sums up my comparison.

[GXL078]

Originally Posted by EB#

I needed just a few wingnuts one day....
Masters price up at about $2 each from their dementing "drawer and individual plastic bag system" - Effing eff that.
Walked over to Bunnings (next door) and grabbed a pack of 8 from the rack for about $3.50.

That sums up my comparison.

Most of the staff I have seen working (or should I say greeting people and confusing them) look like its the first job they have had, ever. At least they will have a good reason for termination to put on their resume. As for the wingnuts etc. That's Champion products ridiculous pricing system A, B, C, D etc. Easy enough to steal them

[The Yeti]

Originally Posted by malazn mafia

Walked into Aldi many years ago and they didn't stock big brand items. Walking into a supermarket that didn't sell Kellogs Cornflakes was quite a revelation. Also a lack of security staff. Seems to be frequented by the elderly and unemployed, and closes early. Wonder how Aldi keeps afloat?

2 reasons,

1/ they do stock big brands BUT only the market leader sort of thing, eg: you can buy Coke but not Pepsi etc you can buy Cadbury chocolate, but not Nestle or Lint

2/ Many of their own branded items are made in Australia (more than the Coles Woolies equivalent)

Add to this they actually have a higher margin than Coles / Woolies but in most cases are much less expensive than them, they also do their research and don't over saturate the area with stores

if you haven't been in to aldi for a few years do your self a favor and give it ago

[4vxc]

Originally Posted by GXL078

Most of the staff I have seen working (or should I say greeting people and confusing them) look like its the first job they have had, ever. At least they will have a good reason for termination to put on their resume. As for the wingnuts etc. That's Champion products ridiculous pricing system A, B, C, D etc. Easy enough to steal them

Masters carry's a huge assortment of Champion products,went there the other day and picked up (and payed for) nuts,bolts,brass fittings ect
pricing seemed straight forward enough to me
thats the best part of Masters for me,the only place with such a big range of Champion products their service is much better than Bunnings also who always give the impression its a huge drama to help you out.
I hate the thought of Bunnings with no real competition in the future

[Boosted8]

Go into bunnings in a red shirt and green apron.

Guaranteed you'll pick up every single woman in that place, after all you'll be the only "team member" that doesn't run the opposite way.

Don't blame me if you get arrested though.

[1TUFFUTE]

This topic has been mentioned before so forgive if I'm rehashing!
My bro was recently poached from Bunnings Aus head It guru(don't know the job title lol)...and is now with Coles who own masters aswell.
While at Bunnings he was privy to every detail about the Bunnings v Masters thing. Masters were always in trouble from the very very start, and Bunnings knew it! Masters over committed to products and under committed budgets fir simple things like garden care and changing the bulbs!....YEP!!!
Bunnings made it their mission to buy up land anywhere masters put a new store and put a Bunnings......even if it didn't totally fulfil their criteria! And that's obviously the pretty simple version!
As far as employees.....Bunnings truely values team work and a sense of being part of a family.....from the very top down! Also every area in Bunnings(building,electrical ect) always has at least one specialist employee on the floor who is an ex chippy or sparky for eg!
Now he's working for Coles/masters, and as others have allready noted, it's only a matter of time, masters is truely screwed!
(At one stage while still at Bunnings, they were aware of a top brass meeting by guys flying in from the USA, meeting about the future of the Masters stores)

[Ghiaman]

Do you mean he now works for Woolworths?
Wesfarmers Group owns Bunnings & Coles.
Woolworths owns Masters.

Sent from my SM-N915G using Tapatalk

[1TUFFUTE]

Ahh yes....brain fade. Woolies of course! You'd think I'd be more tuned in, seeing as we're Twins . Seeing as he's an It wiz and I can hardly turn one on explains a little I think ;)