THE KING buys POSTIE PLUS

[Rep]

Thanks for that Rep. It is a good thing that she has not sold out but perhaps she wanted to but not enough buyers. Will be interesting to see what TH is about

Having read the most recent documents available from the company, there was an indication in the [late filed] half year results announcement on April 8 that the company had "... made progress putting in place an appropriate capital structure for the business but the situation remains difficult."

It notes a number of parties have expressed an interest in the recapitalisation process.

However, I would note there is nothing indicating anything further since.

[percy]

According to page 37 of the Annual Report for 2013, the holding of Janet Cameron and Bichero Investments Pty Ltd was a substantial security holder at 20 September 2013 with 7,991,163 which appears to be held via J B Were (NZ) Limited. This is recorded as 19.98% of the shares.

The only other SSH was Terence Nuttal, Noelene Nuttal and John Buchan held 1,935,129 which was 4.84% of the shares.

There appears to have been no SSH notices lodged with the NZX subsequently so I presume that there are no significant changes thereafter.

The Nuttals sold baby city to PPG.
Jan Cameron's Australian Retail interests are mainly in "administration."

[BlackCross]

Clothing retailer Postie Plus Ltd was in a trading halt, ahead of what is expected to be an announcement about a form of capital injection.......Reuters, so reasonably reliable.

[blackcap]

Went to my local Postie today and spoke to a well versed sales lady. She was aware of the trading halt pending a material announcement. She however had no inside info but was confident it was one of 3 things. 1, a capital injection, 2, a "buyer for PPG" or 3, receivership. She was crossing her fingers for options 1 or 2. She was also confident the announcement would be made tomorrow. For those of you hoping for a "material" announcement... I am sorry to say that she refuted the idea :)

[percy]

"Administration."
Sensible.
Do not expect there will be anything left for shareholders.
Administrators will be able to contain on going lease commitments.
Feel for the excellent store staff.

[Schrodinger]

Just taking a quick look at their board and its one of the weakest I can imagine for a clothing retailer. Their appointment for ecommerce is not the right one. ecommerce retail is a specialist area and they got that wrong. Also the chairman and retail director dont look to be top notch.

[winner69]

"Administration."
Sensible.
Do not expect there will be anything left for shareholders.
Administrators will be able to contain on going lease commitments.
Feel for the excellent store staff.

Maybe cheap jerseys/jumpers/carries coming up Percy

[Snoopy]

Just taking a quick look at their board and its one of the weakest I can imagine for a clothing retailer. Their appointment for ecommerce is not the right one. ecommerce retail is a specialist area and they got that wrong. Also the chairman and retail director dont look to be top notch.


Always easy to say with hindsight. Perhaps PPG should not have gone "global in NZ" with their store footprint? Maybe fully embrace e-commerce and have based themselves in a less urban part of the country, like the West Coast of New Zealand! Lower overheads, and the opportunity to conquer the country from the mail order capital of NZ, Greymouth!

SNOOPY

PS Is Jan Cameron still the richest woman in NZ, given she is spending so much time on administrative matters these days? If she had taken her big payout and instead invested in a growing retailer like Kathmandu, where would she be today?

[winner69]

Always easy to say with hindsight. Perhaps PPG should not have gone "global in NZ" with their store footprint? Maybe fully embrace e-commerce and have based themselves in a less urban part of the country, like the West Coast of New Zealand! Lower overheads, and the opportunity to conquer the country from the mail order capital of NZ, Greymouth!

SNOOPY

PS Is Jan Cameron still the richest woman in NZ, given she is spending so much time on administrative matters these days? If she had taken her big payout and instead invested in a growing retailer like Kathmandu, where would she be today?

Maybe she shouldn't have sold Kathmandu in the first place

Hope patch doesn't follow postie down the gurgler

[Rep]

The administrators mention pursuing compensation but not who they will be pursuing.

An earlier announcement from the company mentioned their distribution outsource partner, a global transport and logistics company, was being pursued over losses.

[winner69]

Another iconic NZ business bites the dust

Hard to imagine anybody really except T&T (whoever they are) buying this dog.

Binns short career as cEO is over ....he tried but I think he was set an impossible task

[Schrodinger]

Take a look at Ezibuy and tell me who gets it. They have a multi channel strategy and deep experience in non store retailing. This company (PP) highlights poor management and overall strategy. Ezibuy have a showcase store (concept)+online+mail. Very smart guys.

Since Postie went the physical store route in a big way they should have made this a great experience as most of today's shoopers get annoyed by driving for 1 hr and getting presented with a poor experience.

[percy]

[QUOTE=Snoopy;484231]Always easy to say with hindsight. Perhaps PPG should not have gone "global in NZ" with their store footprint? Maybe fully embrace e-commerce and have based themselves in a less urban part of the country, like the West Coast of New Zealand! Lower overheads, and the opportunity to conquer the country from the mail order capital of NZ, Greymouth!

SNOOPY

The business was founded on mail order,so they should have been the first to use the net,instead of being about the last.!
A history of poor management.

[easy money]

THE KING says in rebuilding my NZ port had to start some where so why not retailing so BGR & now PPG as all the big bad news is out and market dived in the last few days consolidation has happened and rebound is in the air [not that air] :D

PPG bottom at .90cents backing up to at least $1.00 read there last reports they said bit under but will make the Div, stated new head office move into one building in Christchurch soon and general push ahead, visited several stores including Baby Shop ,cloths store separated manchester chain in all up and going. [8D]

BGR and PPG feel like the TV show `Open all hours`.:)

Watching from Paraparaumu THE KING

Are you still holding..

[axe]

Looking like a split call on that one ... ;)

I always wanted to see a merger between PPG and PPL, maybe they could work out their supply chain issues together? :)

PPL has a far stronger board.

My opinion is poor management is the root cause for Posties struggles, Pumpkin Patch has Rod Duke - Patch will be fine in the long run.

DISC Hold neither

[Nuts]

I always wanted to see a merger between PPG and PPL, maybe they could work out their supply chain issues together? :)

PPL has a far stronger board.

My opinion is poor management is the root cause for Posties struggles, Pumpkin Patch has Rod Duke - Patch will be fine in the long run.

DISC Hold neither

well that looks like us down the drain , after 10 years of sitting it out looks like we wont get much out of this. so much for loyality eh
nuts

[winner69]

Before the charts get wiped here is PPG chart since the IPO in 2003 at $1.00

They raised $15m which valued the company at $40m

The usual stag and then fell away. Some tip sheet tipped it out in 2006 and the promoter of that tip sheet who shall remain nameless made a killing as the punters rushed in and took the share price up over a $1 (even though he said it was worth $1.25 at least)

Well since then it seems to have been downhill all the way - one long and miserable road to zero.

Never mind that is what makes markets

[blackcap]

I really feel sorry for the staff working at PPG. It must be hard on them not knowing how long they have left to work and from all accounts they have been working well but constantly facing logistics distractions that impeded them doing their job properly. What a sorry saga.

[Nuts]

There was a rumour best and less were interested in ppg , pity nothing seems to have come rom that.
A different board may have saved this company. Looks like we have lost everything.
Nuts

[stoploss]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/business/10116150/Postie-Plus-buyer-found

[ziggy]

That's a pretty quick result which will hopefully be great for staff as well as shareholders

[bull....]

whs brought it lol

[Nuts]

Lets hope sale comes to fruition. I wonder what a companylike this with over $12 mil indebt wouldbe worth to the shareholders .????
Nuts

[percy]

Lets hope sale comes to fruition. I wonder what a companylike this with over $12 mil indebt wouldbe worth to the shareholders .????
Nuts


Nothing.! And appears the bank will also take a haircut.
Will be fantastic news if store staff retain their jobs.
With the sale coming so quickly,I expect the buyer has already been dealing with PPG board,who were not able to give certain assurances.ie ongoing lease liabilities.Administration gives buyer a "clean" business to buy.

[boofters]

Nothing.! And appears the bank will also take a haircut.
Will be fantastic news if store staff retain their jobs.
With the sale coming so quickly,I expect the buyer has already been dealing with PPG board,who were not able to give certain assurances.ie ongoing lease liabilities.Administration gives buyer a "clean" business to buy.


I would be wary if I were a HLG shareholder, the last thing they need is one of those Europe retailers that actually sell fashion cheap..i.e Zara, Primark, topshop et al

[kiwitrev]

It's not WHS, they have stated not them and media reports say international retailer.

[karen1]

Quite right, kiwitrev, wondered when someone would pick up on bull's post. Here's the article which confirms the WHS disinterest http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/10116150/Postie-Plus-buyer-found

WHS is no longer an international retailer.

[Felix]

It's great for the employees that a buyer has been found so soon. Very annoying for shareholders that the directors allowed the company to get backed into a corner to the extent that shareholders will likely be left with nothing. They had years to get the company on stronger financial footing - they talked about needing to strengthen the balance sheet for a couple of years.

Why didn't the legal action against the distributor commence sooner? Why has it taken until now? I guess that means any success from the legal action will flow through to the new owners, and the shareholders who lost their money because of the distributor will see no benefit? Also, why did the company sign up to such onerous leases, if indeed they were one of the factors that stopped the buyer from signing up earlier?

So many questions, and hopefully some will be answered in the coming weeks.

[Nuts]

Scuttlebuck says possible 2nd bidder in the wing s, hope so.

[stoploss]

Scuttlebuck says possible 2nd bidder in the wing s, hope so.
unfortunately that will be a second bidder dealing with the administrators....surely nothing left for shareholders once the debt is sorted with the bank ......

[kiwitrev]

From my work experience in that industry (appts under debentures) it would need to be some special circumstance for any funds being available to S/H. There will be many in the pecking order at various levels including IRD, preferential creditors and staff not to mention the very high costs PWC will be racking up,and of course commitments under the many leases.

[blackcap]

From my work experience in that industry (appts under debentures) it would need to be some special circumstance for any funds being available to S/H. There will be many in the pecking order at various levels including IRD, preferential creditors and staff not to mention the very high costs PWC will be racking up,and of course commitments under the many leases.

Yeah there was never going to be anything left for shareholders. So glad that there are suitors though and looks like some staff may keep their jobs.

[iceman]

Gaynor's good summary of the history that lead to this sad end !

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11269189

[Ekrub]

Easy to be wise after the event, or did he warn shareholders to bail? Maybe Milford Asset Management avoided this one, nice of him to tell us why now.

[winner69]

Easy to be wise after the event, or did he warn shareholders to bail? Maybe Milford Asset Management avoided this one, nice of him to tell us why now.

Everything in Gaynor's story has been stated on this (and other threads) with the appropriate health warnings

Percy in particular has filled in the details of the ins and outs of the previous owners and current management. My morbid fascination with walking disasters have provided commentary on the financials. Others have contributed, some trying to see the positives.

Nothing new in Gaynor's story or the one on Stuff

Yes the warnings were given here, and not in hindsight

[iceman]

Easy to be wise after the event, or did he warn shareholders to bail? Maybe Milford Asset Management avoided this one, nice of him to tell us why now.

I don´t think Gaynor is trying to be " wise after the event" at all. He is simply summarising the history of this sad story for his readers benefit. I think it is healthy for people to look back and assess what went wrong.
As w69 points out, for followers of the thread on Sharetrader, this should not have come as a surprise. But not everyone reads ST.
Percy in particular has had his finger on the pulse and ear to the ground with this one for a long time and has been spot on. Thanks Percy.

[Ekrub]

Fair enough....well said.

[Nuts]

I notice in the minutes of a creditors meeting on 12th june that the administrators were resposible to maximise the return to both crediors and shareholders. That is the only reference t shateholders t hat ican find anywhere.
Does this mean we dont count at all ?

[percy]

Correct.!!!!
Your directors called in the administrators handing them your company .[ on your behalf]
They have sold PPG's assets.Should there be any funds left after repaying debt etc then that is retained by PPG.[shareholders]
I very much doubt there will be any money left.In fact I expect there will be a shortfall.[No dough for Nuts]
Whether there is any value left in "the shell "company I do not know.
You will note in newspaper articles talk of store closures as they "could not reach agreements with landlords" .This is why they had to go into "administration".You will remember I often talked of "on going lease liabilities."New owner now does not have "on going lease liabilities" for stores they did not want.Usual reason is the rents were too high for the turnover they were generating.

[Nuts]

Thanks percy, we can only hope I guess.

[percy]

Thanks percy, we can only hope I guess.

I would think you are best to write off your investment,as the chances of any residue cash would be slim.
I do not know how ,or whether NZX still allows "shell company" listings .Should the PPG be used for this,then your holding would most probably be diluted with hundreds of millions of new shares issued to acquire new company.
What will be interesting is seeing how the South Africans develop Postie.With their experience I think they will do very well.
Must be tough market,as I note The Farmers are having regular huge sales.I judge their sales by the discount on Jockey underwear.!! Usually less 20% but today's ad had less 50%.

[croesus]

I don't have any faith in Gaynor.

as Bob Jones said a " lightweight "

[whatsup]

I don't have any faith in Gaynor.

as Bob Jones said a " lightweight "

And B J is to be believed in this case ?

[winner69]

Nuts - might get some cash. Good one

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11297527

[percy]

Nuts - might get some cash. Good one

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11297527

Lets hope for Nuts' sake.!!

[winner69]

Lets hope for Nuts' sake.!!

Maybe not
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/10301293/Creditors-may-be-out-of-pocket

As you called it Percy ......nothing for creditors and only the banks gets anything

The South Africans got a business for need too nothing

[percy]

Maybe not
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/10301293/Creditors-may-be-out-of-pocket

As you called it Percy ......nothing for creditors and only the banks gets anything

The South Africans got a business for need too nothing

I suppose to some NZ suppliers of Postie Plus not receiving anything must put huge pressures on them.To some it will be the end of their business.
The only good businesses are profitable ones.Yet retailers demand better prices,and longer payment terms.The bigger the retailer, the harder the terms are.