NATIONAL: Australian womenswear retailer Cue will adopt an aggressive discount strategy in the lead up to Christmas. It is understood the move is aimed at combatting weak consumer confidence, with Cue executives expecting other domestic retailers to follow suit. "We sit at our computers and watch with horror at the falling Australian dollar," Cue founder Rod Levy told the Australasian Textiles & Fashion Magazine.
"Because we import luxury fabrics from European mills, we are facing a double whammy: higher import costs and a plunging Australian dollar."
His comments indicate how sharply the market has deteriorated in recent times, with Levy telling The Australian he was "unfazed" by the economic downturn just one month ago.
"We are insulated because we are below luxury brands, which are struggling," he said in a story which ran on September 29. "We are aspirational because our designs are funky, edgy, modern and appeal to young people," Levis says.
Group general manager David Kesby also said he was confident the business would deliver $170 million in turnover for 2008-09.
The current trading conditions couldn't have come at a worse time for the family-owned retailer, which celebrates its 40th anniversary next month.