The Warehouse Group announced it has extended its loan in banking institutions to $330 million, still undrawn, to refinance the group’s NZX listed bond of $125 million that would mature in June this year.
The group, which owns Noel Leeming, Warehouse Stationery and Torpedo7, also said it has since applied for the government’s wage subsidy scheme and has received $67.7 million in total to support its employees over a 12-week period.
The split by brands is $52 million to the The Warehouse Limited (including Warehouse Stationery), $12.1 million to Noel Leeming, $3.2 million to Torpedo7 and $0.4 million to the TheMarket.com.
“The receipt of this funding is crucial to the Group maintaining its workforce while stores remain shut and the group thanks the government for this support,” the Warehouse said in a statement.
The Warehouse said it has sought to provide certainty on the salaries and wages that its 11,000 employees receive, and that they would receive 100 per cent of their regular income during the four-week isolation period.
Five of the The Warehouse’s brands are now operational in a limited capacity for essential items only (both online and available to be contacted over the phone) after agreement from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (“MBIE”). These include The Warehouse, Noel Leeming, Warehouse Stationery, Torpedo7 and TheMarket.com.
The company has re-opened its distribution centres to support these sales and is operating multiple The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming retail stores as closed fulfilment centres.
These stores are not open to the public, the Warehouse clarified, and added that team members working there are following strict PPE, hygiene and safe distancing protocols in line with the Ministry of Health guidelines.
“The purpose of opening these stores as fulfilment centres is to enable efficient order processing and delivery to customers,” the Warehouse said. “The stores were selected based on geographical location and efficient stock levels to ensure demand can be met across our local communities.”
