Big W
| File:BIGW Logo.png | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Headquarters | , |
Number of locations | 186 |
Key people |
|
| Products | Womenswear, Menswear, Kidswear, Footwear, Underwear & Sleepwear, Home, Leisure, Toys & Sporting, Electronics , Optometry, Gardening, Pets, Party |
| Revenue |  A$4.11 billion (2015)[1] |
 A$114 million (2015)[1] | |
Number of employees | 22,000+ |
| Parent | Woolworths Limited |
| Website | bigw |
BIG W is a leading Australian chain of discount department stores, which was founded in 1964. The company is a division of Woolworths Limited and currently operates 186 stores, with about 22,000 employees across Australia and Asia.
History
Woolworths Limited's original Variety stores carried a range of general merchandise. In the 1960s, the company created BIG W Discount Variety or Family Department Stores to complement and extend the range of Woolworths Supermarkets and, ultimately, replace the extensive Variety store network. The discount department store chain was named BIG W to represent its big brother-style relationship to Woolworths Supermarkets.
The first BIG W stand-alone store opened on 7 October 1964 at Jesmond[2] on the outskirts of Newcastle. On opening day, BIG W promised to deliver “the cream of the range” of products to the local community. At 24,500 square feet, the double-storey Jesmond store represented a new style of shopping for local consumers, one in which they could buy a large proportion of their household products in one shop close to home.
Over the next two years, six BIG W stores were up and running. Kotara was the second BIG W store to open its doors in 1965 and by 1969 every state in Australia had a BIG W store.[3] The separation of BIG W and Woolworths supermarkets was largely completed by 1989, although a few Woolworths Variety stores continued to operate into the 1990s (such as the one in Rundle Mall, Adelaide).[citation needed]
In October 2003, Woolworths announced a $1 billion makeover of BIG W, including a new store format, logo and slogan. The first store with the new format in the Rouse Hill Town Centre in New South Wales, was opened in March 2008, followed by the Top Ryde and Geelong stores.[4] The new logo started appearing in advertising, on store dockets and on a new BIG W website in 2007. The former tagline "We sell for less" was replaced with "Live big for less".
In June 2015, BIG W opened the Brickworks Marketplace store in Adelaide, South Australia alongside sister retailers Woolworths and Dan Murphy's, with a new store format. The new store introduced department 'Gateways', an updated floorplan which welcomes customers into each area of the store while retaining the focus on brands and products.
In January 2016, Sally Macdonald was appointed to the role of CEO of BIG W.
Stores
In 2015, there were 186 BIG W stores trading across Australia: 63 in New South Wales, 46 in Queensland, 34 in Victoria, 17 in Western Australia, 17 in South Australia, 5 in the Australian Capital Territory, 3 in Tasmania and 1 trading in the Northern Territory.[5]
Services
In 2007, BIG W began trialing the provision of optometry services in South Australia and since then, these services have been added to selected stores in Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.[6] BIG W pioneered the Australian use of self-serve checkouts, which were introduced in 2003 on a trial basis in two of Sydney's major stores and began expanding throughout Australia in late 2005.[citation needed]
August 2014 saw BIG W launch its first Party Store at their Rouse Hill store, and its second Party store at the newly refurbished Macquarie Centre in North Ryde, NSW. There are currently 134 BIG W Party Stores making BIG W the leading Party retailer in Australia. [7]
BIG W is the leading and largest physical (bricks and mortar) retailer of books and toys in Australia. The chain is also revered for its customer service skills, with high priority training being given to ensure that every customer walks out happy.
References
- ^ a b Sales report. "Full Year Results - Financial Year 2015" (PDF). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
- ^ "First BIG W Discount Department Store opens".
- ^ "Big W Case Study - Streamline Catalogue Production" (PDF).
- ^ "Woolies plans to put big back in Big W". Australian Financial Review. 22 October 2007: 14.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "BIG W Store Locator".
- ^ Big W Vision - Optical Locations
- ^ "Big W Party Store".
External links
- Video clips