Christchurch-based furniture retailer, Smiths City Group, has appointed Tony Allison as its new board director.
On the Smiths City board, Allison will be a director and a representative of UIL Limited (formerly Utilico Investments Limited), a significant shareholder in the group.
As chief executive of retail franchise chain Night ‘n Day Foodstores Limited, Allison has led the company’s strategy, development and implementation plans both for the group and individual operating areas. This has helped the company to gain recognition for its growth through inclusion in the Deloitte Fast 50 index.
Craig Boyce, Smiths City chair, said Allison also serves on a number of other boards.
“His retail experience, and as a chartered accountant with a corporate governance background, will be a welcome addition to our board,” Boyce said.
“Smiths City has been looking to expand its board for some time and with Tony we will now have five very experienced directors working with a refreshed management team,” he added.
Boyce said Smiths City is on a path to renewal and a larger geographic footprint following a number of significant operating and management changes during the past year. He added, the board of directors will continue to drive further transformation for the group.
Allison lives in Dunedin and is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants and a chartered member of the Institute of Directors. He holds directorships with Dunedin International Airport, City Forests, the Otago Southland Employers Association, Forbury Park Trotting Club and AA Cleaners (Otago) Limited.
His career includes board and senior management roles with Calder Stewart Industries, London law firm Olswang and Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
The Smiths City Group recently announced an increase in underlying profit and sales. Earnings before interest and tax, before abnormal items, was up 16 per cent to $6.6 million.
Sales on same store basis increased 2.4 per cent on the previous year to $210 million.
“We’ve reduced costs and improved our retail performance. The changes have successfully unified the company under the core brand and re-energised the business,” Boyce said.
The group reported an operating surplus after taxation for the 12 months to April 30 of $5.6 million.
To further increase revenue streams, Boyce said there would be a renewed focus on the group’s finance business, based on providing better financing options to online and in-store customers.
Chief executive Roy Campbell and Boyce said efforts over the past year were only the beginning of the journey for the 98-year-old retailer. There would be a reshaping of store, online and logistics operations to reflect the changing face of retail and customer expectations.
The directors have declared an unimputed dividend of 2.5 cents, unchanged from last year, to be paid on August 12.
