HARARE- Clothing retailer, Edgars Stores Limited said it has lost business to runners, flea markets and car boutiques which are flooding the market with cheap and fake imports.
Addressing an analyst briefing held to announce the clothing retailer’s 2023 financial results Friday, Edgars chief executive officer Sevious Mushosho said the business is now working hard to reclaim its customers using new strategies.
“In 2021/22, as Edgars we dropped the ball. Effectively, we were selling not the quality we should have been selling. The informal sector, the boutiques, the runners, they took advantage of that and started going to Turkey and selling garments totally different from what we were selling. They created value for the customers, so they became a huge competition.
“But the game changed in 2023 because now we are competition to them. In a year’s time, we will probably be having a few boutiques in town,” he said.
He said Edgars was now returning to its traditional suppliers and also engaging new ones to regain lost market share.
“As Edgars we are back in the market offering genuine, exclusive, high-quality clothing and footwear and accessories again. We believe as Edgars to be relevant to our customers, we need to go back to our original value which is what we did last year.
“We dropped most of the suppliers and went back to our traditional suppliers and also engage new suppliers in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mauritius, Botswana and Turkey,” said Mushosho.
He said the group would re-launch Express shops, where it will sell for cash, targeting the low-income customer segment of the economy.
“Express is focusing at very low end, downtown, high density and growth points and that’s a game changer because we want to deal with second hand clothing market and provide new clothes competing with those guys in town,” said Mushosho.
During the year ending 7 January 2024, the Edgars group reported revenue of ZWL$294.0 billion which is 70.3 percent up from what was achieved in 2023 of ZWL172.6 billion. The growth is attributed to better procurement, ongoing cost management as well as other initiatives to ensure high quality stock availability in stores despite supply chain challenges.
Total Edgars group units sold declined by 10.8 percent from 2.85 Millon to 2.55 million compared to the same period last year.
The group also recorded profit before tax of ZWL 40.7 billion was an increase of 432.4 % from the prior period of ZWL9.2 billion. Increase in profit for the year was indicative of correct pricing and focused cost management
Under the group, Edgars is the flagship store focusing on the high- end market while Jet and Express is for the low-income earners.
