Postie Plus

Postie+

With more than 75 stores, Postie+ is one of the largest clothing retail specialist in New Zealand with a family clothing focus. Operating in every province, the Postie+ store network is a major contributor to the profitability of the business.

The Postie+ target market is “middle New Zealand” for sales of value for money casual fashion clothes and core clothing products which reflect current designs and colours and stand up to the use and environments they are worn in.

The company’s strong provincial base in heartland New Zealand complements our metropolitan presence and provides balance in changing economic and climatic conditions.

The regional diversification and our wide product range in womenswear and menswear reduces some of the vulnerability to seasonality associated with retail clothing.

Lingerie is not seasonal and is an important focus of the group.Postie+ offers competitively priced qualitycosmetics and toiletries ranges, which outside the December period, is not a seasonal product.

SchoolTex (the Company’s school uniforms business) has strong sales associated with traditional seasons. The Schooltex operation within Postie+ has expanded its national profile in classroom and sports uniforms for New Zealand schools with the 2007 acquisition of Classmates.

There is a worldwide trend to large format stores in bulk centres that are ideally suited for family clothing retailers and Postie+ is represented in such locations.

Postie+ differs from many clothing retailers in that it is responsible for most of its own designs and for its importing and manufacturing relationships. A large proportion of the Postie+ range is designed by our designers who also select materials and colours, and use New Zealand sizing’s.These products are then mostly manufactured in China at a significant cost saving to the end customer. Woollen garments are manufactured by Waimate Knitwear, a contract supplier located in North Otago.

Our Heritage

Postie+ had its beginnings in 1909 when Thomas Dellaca bought a barberís shop, which was later converted to a footwear and drapery store in the West Coast goldmining town of Globe Hill, near Reefton. In 1919 he relocated the business to Reefton. Over time Thomasí sons joined their father in the business. The business expanded into a general store including mení and boyswear and in 1946 a Dellaca store was opened in Westport.

The Dellacas stores in Westport and Reefton continued to grow and prosper in the 1960ís and 1970ís. A Greymouth store was opened in 1979 and a Hokitika store in 1980.

The Dellacas established a very successful mail order clothing business trading as Postie Fashion/Direct, during the 1980ís and early 1990ís. Towards the end of that period the company opened a number of retail shops in the South Island under the name Clothes for Less. While these outlets were initially to clear excess mail order stocks, such was their growth that they became established as a retail business in their own right as Postie+.

In 1994, the Company purchased Warehouse Clothing Company Limited, a 57 store chain. Unfortunately this purchase coincided with a significant industry downturn, which combined with company specific issues for Warehouse Clothing, resulting in significant losses.
A review of the business led to the closure in 1996 of Warehouse Clothing with some locations absorbed into an expanded Postie+ network.
Postie+ expanded its Auckland presence from 1999 to 2001, with the acquisition of seven Rendells stores and a successful move into bulk retail centres.

By 2001 the mail order business was closed being considered ancillary to the retail operation and required a disproportionately large share of resources.

Postie+ is committed to a strong national network of retail stores. This process which included the earlier conversion of Rendells stores in Auckland into Postie+ stores, continues with the ongoing relocation and refurbishment of stores throughout New Zealand.

Who’s Henri?

Postie+ has completed two years of development of the “Who’s Henri?” label created by a PPGL design team to showcase contemporary womenís brands.

Postie+ will also benefit from the planned introduction of internet-based retailing featuring customer rewards programmes.

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