JB Hi-Fi is one of the biggest bricks-and-mortar chains supporting its online retail arm, and one of the few releasing figures on how much money it’s making online. Digital sales represented 1.4% of turnover, or $25 million, in the first six months of the current financial year.
The chain is succeeding by taking more of its offering online. With online-only deals and discounts, it’s attempting to separate the digital store and give it more of a presence of its own.
Perhaps more interesting than all of this is the company’s move into direct imports. These online-only deals see the company import equipment and then sell it for a much cheaper cost. It’s a clever way to get around tax, but also represents how nimble the company can be when adapting to a digital environment.
So despite the relatively small online performance, there’s a solid business here.
Nielsen: 1.082 million
No stranger to controversy, founder Ruslan Kogan has managed to carve out a significant piece of the online electronics market – and made himself one of the country’s richest men under 30 in the process. Expanding into new categories has helped this online powerhouse exceed $100 million during the current year.
Nielsen: 443,000
LivingSocial was actually locally-produced site Jump On It before the American company snapped up the firm just last month, two years after making an initial $5 million investment.
The investment was a success story for local founders Colin Fabig, James Gilbert and Adam Rigby, after the trio launched the site in 2009, following the group buying craze in the United States.
It won some hefty investors too, including Roger Allen of Allen and Buckeridge.
Whether the site will continue to do well is anyone’s guess – it all depends on the competition it faces in the years ahead, as the initial craze for group buying slows down.
Nielsen: 935,000
The traffic is here, even though the revenue might not be yet. Myer is keen on improving its online presence in the year ahead, having already opened its Chinese site – whether it’ll be enough to push it among the nation’s most successful online retailers remains to be seen.
Nielsen: 587,000
The inclusion of Oo.com.au on the list reveals Australia’s keen desire for discounts. This department store was founded in 2005, and has found success ever since as it continues to market to those looking for the cheapest price.
Nielsen: 844,000
A $14.5 million investment from Twitter-backer Insight Venture Partners didn’t hurt this company’s chances. It remains one of the country’s largest private shopping networks.
Nielsen: 672,000
17. Scoopon
This Catch of the Day spin-off benefits from the company’s strong supply chain. Some big-name deals, including a recent deal with Hungry Jack’s, gives the Scoopon brand some clout, along with some branching off from the regular health and beauty routine.
Nielsen: 780,000
Dean McEvoy struck gold when he sold this Pollenizer-backed start-up to Yahoo!7 for $40 million. The deal put the top four companies into the hands of major media businesses – and confirmed major corporations were paying attention to the industry.
A large sales team and constant attention to editorial is keeping this group buying site among the top of the pack.
Nielsen: 866,000
The fact Groupon is on this list without appearing last year indicates just how quickly this industry has grown – and how rapidly this American entrant has been able to dominate its share of the market.
Although group buying is beginning to taper off from its peak in April 2011, revenue hit $498 million last year and it’ll reach $700 million in 2012. Groupon has one of the biggest slices of that market, and as the smaller players start to fall away, it’ll only dominate more and more.
It’ll be interesting to see whether the company shifts direction under chief executive Tobias Teuber’s leadership after Patrick Schmidt’s resignation. But one thing’s for sure – the industry needs to start offering more than health products and restaurant vouchers to survive long-term.
Nielsen: 1.460 million
Turning Westfield into an online shopping network was probably one of the better moves this property giant made in the last year. Giving all the merchants another outfit to get online is a win-win, and is yet another sign major Australian corporations are taking the internet more seriously as a sales channel.
Nielsen: 905,000
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
