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Perusing the latest annual report of furniture retailer Lewis Group [JSE:LEW] reminded me of a very disappointing experience I had with the company about three months ago. For a group boasting 55% of sales coming from repeat customers, I was really taken aback when I was forced to cancel a purchase I’d made because the goods weren’t available. That was after waiting for a good three weeks for delivery.
In its annual report in question, Lewis claims to have trained 3 096 of its staff during its 2011 financial year, which amounts to an 18% increase from the previous year. Black staff accounted for 84%. By all accounts, the data makes for a commendable deed for a company that employs around 6 200 people.
However, there seems to be room for further improvement in staff training. As a retailer you can’t have your sales people selling merchandise without having checked its availability in the storeroom, which is what happened to me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t wait for longer than three weeks, especially because nobody seemed to care enough to keep me updated about whether the goods were coming or not. Maybe it was just an isolated incident.
Somewhere in its annual report it appears Lewis – which punts exclusive quality, value for money merchandise as its competitive advantage – is sometimes let down by its vendors and distribution systems. The annual report mentions “suppliers and distribution partners performing below standard” as one of the key risks for the business.
As an investment, Lewis is often preferred to the multi-brand JD Group by investors looking for exposure to furniture retail stocks. The group is largely a single brand.
In its annual report in question, Lewis claims to have trained 3 096 of its staff during its 2011 financial year, which amounts to an 18% increase from the previous year. Black staff accounted for 84%. By all accounts, the data makes for a commendable deed for a company that employs around 6 200 people.
However, there seems to be room for further improvement in staff training. As a retailer you can’t have your sales people selling merchandise without having checked its availability in the storeroom, which is what happened to me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t wait for longer than three weeks, especially because nobody seemed to care enough to keep me updated about whether the goods were coming or not. Maybe it was just an isolated incident.
Somewhere in its annual report it appears Lewis – which punts exclusive quality, value for money merchandise as its competitive advantage – is sometimes let down by its vendors and distribution systems. The annual report mentions “suppliers and distribution partners performing below standard” as one of the key risks for the business.
As an investment, Lewis is often preferred to the multi-brand JD Group by investors looking for exposure to furniture retail stocks. The group is largely a single brand.
