Harvey Norman took in $2.7 billion last year, and profits were up 9 per cent. Gerry Harvey’s still not particularly happy or optimistic about retailing in Australia, though.
A Sydney Morning Herald article unpacks the retail giant’s year-on-year figures, as well as speaking to executive chairman Gerry Harvey. Harvey Norman managed to turn its $2.7 billion revenue into $252.26 million profit, according to the report. It also states that Harvey Norman has stores in Slovenia, something most folks probably didn’t know. No word on how much (if any) profit’s been turned by the Harvey Norman Big Buys project, though.
In any case, continuing something of a trend in recent months, he’s not happy about his retail figures, telling the Herald that he couldn’t understand sagging rates of consumer confidence and thus spending. But not in a business-heavy analytical way, because, after all, this is Gerry Harvey. The paper quotes him thusly:
“With unemployment at 5 per cent and a resources boom we should all be happy as pigs in shit”
Has Gerry Harvey been taking elocution lessons from Ruslan Kogan recently? [SMH]
Image: Getty (Gerry with Tara Reid at Magic Millions Horse Racing Carnival, Gold Coast, January 2011)
wsDK_II
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:04 AMI dont understand why this guy is getting air time! he is a greedy clusterfuck of a man, and someone should take his money away and let him live on 60,000 like the rest of us.
Then we will see if he wants to use his money to buy overpriced crap.
Joey
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:55 PMWow best comment I’ve read all day
jj
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:06 AMGerry Harvey – Yawn.
Beerin
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:07 AMAnd once again our friend Gerry decides the best way to approach consumers and win customers is to insult and patronize them and be as adversarial as possible. What a guy!
Commander Shepard
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:16 AM@ wsDK_II
agreed, or he can swap me for $37.000
wsDK_II
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:21 AMshit mate, where do you work???!!??
f4ction
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:13 AMYeah, I found your 60k to be VERY optimistic for me on my 40k.
…Can I retire and be on 60k from now on?
wsDK_II
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:45 AMhang on, i only get $47k after tax and super (i live in australia if that helps?)
Rod
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:12 AMIf I recall rightly, the average Australian full-time wage is about $60-65k (before tax).
DK Son
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 2:24 PMpoint me in the direction of these jobs pls
Mik
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:01 PMWow, is anyone willing to affer me an Average job?
cayal
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:39 PMI thought Rod was pulling stuff out his butt, turns out he is right:
http://www.emigratetoaustralia.org/average-wages-australia.html
I’d like to know where these are.
Brett
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 7:00 PM$130,000k – it’s called the mining industry. Leave your comfort zone and make some money girls.
Coruja
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 8:10 PM+1 for the mining industry. I’m gonna make 35 in after tax this next 6 weeks in an unskilled job.
Rod
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 8:29 PMI have a very accurate butt, y’see…
Corteks
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 6:19 PMI LoLed. I mean you’re Commander Shepard right? Surely you’d get paid a bit more than that considering you’re saving the universe! :P
To be serious that’s a bit sucky. But hey I’m only around 45k and honestly 60k would be pretty amazepants.
glennc
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:18 AMdinosaur
MDolley
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:18 AMGerry’s problem isn’t consumer confidence. It’s consumer intelligence.
Somebody needs to sit Gerry down and tell him…
A) People are spending money online
B) Trying to tax online sales makes you look evil
C) Harvey Norman Big Buys is shit
D) There is nothing stopping Gerry from selling online via Slovenia if he wants
E) Try something different, like buy online and pick up in store. The biggest problem with online shopping is postage. Remove that.
Jordaan Mylonas
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 5:54 PMDick Smith do this with Click and Collect. It’s pretty nifty.
Dan Miller
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:19 AMOh quit your crying. No one wants to buy in your stores because they are run by people who have no clue about customer services, and your prices are way to high.
The Gremlin
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:08 PM“There is nothing stopping Gerry from selling online via Slovenia if he wants”
Yes there is, Its called the ATO
The Gremlin
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:09 PMSorry that reply was meant at MDolley
MDolley
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 2:25 PMI am not sure what the ATO would have to with it if he set up a company in Slovenia that sold products online? Myer set up myfind.com based out of Hong Kong and China
SkinHead
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:06 PMThere is no problem with an Australian Company setting up overseas. Its still taxable to Australia. Its a CFC ( Controlled Foreign Company)
olearymo
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:21 AMUgh, god, shut UP Harvey!
He’s like the kid who hangs around but nobody knows why and he just won’t go home or SHUT UP!
Ronny
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:24 AMDon’t forget… He’s talking about himself too since he’s Australian, but clearly he’s not as happy as a pig in shit…
He needs to find shit to roll in first.
Aliasalpha
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:58 AMTell him to look in the mirror?
Chris
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 2:46 PMWell, that’s because he’s got a s*** load of money to roll in every day.
He’s not happy because he wants more money to roll in while the rest of stay in s***.
EckyThump
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:26 AMConsidering he’s part of the problem not the solution he should probably keep it to himself! We recently got a ‘Joyce Main’ here, so I thought to myself great, more competition,… She’s married to ‘Harvey Norman’!! #[
Aliasalpha
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:55 PMDidn’t the identical screaming adverts tip you off?
Matt L
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 9:40 AMSack him, give me his job. I’m sure I can bring Harvey Norman up to scratch… I’d probably start by changing it’s name/logo. That stupid distracting flashing traffic sign in Warrawong makes me hate him even more.
panderiz
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:04 AMNever shop at HN and will continue to convince every man and his dog to avoid them.
Jack
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:08 AMI avoid HN at all costs. Overpriced and terrible service.
Gerry Harvey, you’re an idiot.
cayal
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:13 AMIt’s scary that he is so far removed from consumers and is a CEO.
cayal
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:18 AMlet me finish that…lol
…is a CEO of a company whose main income are the consumers.
PeterB
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:19 AMI AM as happy as a pig in shit. I just don’t need to prove it by buying from Hardly Normal stores.
Andy
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 10:26 AMGerry maybe you should just lower your freakin’ higher than normal mark ups and have real discounted items – Maybe then you’ll get people to walk into your stores …What a git!
Aliasalpha
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:00 AMIs that photo the harvey norman in Wagga or do they all look exactly the same?
olearymo
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:29 AMIt looks exactly like the one in Toowoomba I thought.
Freaky.
Suburb
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:30 AMI thought it was Bella Vista / Norwest
Aliasalpha
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:59 AMHeh fair enough, all the same then. I figured they’d look MOSTLY the same but the weird castle looking entrance and the big valve taps looked a bit uniquely wagga. Good to know HN is consistently fugly wherever you go
MDolley
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:19 PMIt is the Wagga Wagga store. It’s taken from the Wikipedia page. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Norman
Adrian
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 7:45 PMIt’s in Slovinia!!!!
olearymo
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:28 AM‘Happy as pigs in shit’
So he means as happy as Gerry Harvey, right? The terms are kinda interchangable.
Except that’s not very fair to the pigs.
EckyThump
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:12 PMYeah, could be an old Toowoomba shot from before the big move. If HN actually built that, then it would explain the similarities, I just assumed they leased it originally! #]
Sean C
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:15 PMI cant even picture where the HN is in Toowoomba… and I lived there for 5 years!!
EckyThump
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:43 PMSame place, opposite corner, big friggin store! #]
Sean C
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:20 PMNot very helpful. Was it southside near KMart and Good Guys?
poedgirl
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:36 AMSo, in a time where many retail outlets had lower sales over the past year and therefore less profits, he managed to get higher profits… And he’s complaining…
Seriously, what the hell Harvey? You’re constantly whinging that people are going online to buy things, yet you still make higher profits. Talk about greedy.
MDolley
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:05 PMI think the profits also included property revaluations and other non-sales related business activity.
Chris
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 2:25 PMIt’s called marked to market or more plainly, creative accounting
olearymo
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:11 PMThere’s a reason they call him Scrooge
Stevorooni
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:39 AMhaha I love it when they wheel out Gerry for a quote.
George
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 11:51 AMWhat I don’t get is how is he making so much profit? Why do ppl continually shop there though?
I find being a shopper there horrific. They had a specific memory card I was after so I had to go. I went in to get them to price match. After waiting for roughly 25mins at the camera counter, where other employees were but they could “only serve” the other side of the counter, I got what I was after. “Great” service. Nevermind quite a few other employees walked by not even acknowledging if I needed help. Yet he wonders why ppl are turning away. I hope he goes the Clive Peters way eventually.
chrisp
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 12:44 PMTaking my cashed-up retiree parents shopping for a new TV this weekend. I know where I won’t be going.
Matthew K
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:25 PMHey Harvey, stop overcharging for your mediocre goods and we’ll spend more money at your stores.
*looks for couches online*
James
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:37 PMwow, Gerry is such a Douche. Stupid old fart.
Drongo
Thursday, September 1, 2011 at 1:31 AMIf you look a bit closer you’ll see he’s a Double Douche
Dan Miller
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:44 PMWell I’m after a new TV in the next few days. I know I’m asking for it but I’m going to really test and see what happens. I all ways shop at The Good Guys, which is where I will end up buying. But I just want to see what kind of deal I can get out of them.
lulz
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 1:59 PMLOLOL fantastic, I wish you the best of luck!
SkinHead
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 3:14 PMNever ever had a good price from Good Guys. The cash price was everyone elses full price..
Jamesmag
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 4:41 PMYou must have a crap Good Guys then. Everything I’ve bought from The Good Guys, TV, washing machine, fridge, etc, has all been at LEAST $200 below the price of the same model at a competitors retail outlet.
Richard
Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at 5:42 PMSure but haggle anywhere else and they will also drop the price. How much depends on the individual store.