DIY Trade News November 2013
8
NEWS
SPOTLIGHT
FEATURE
COMPANY
PROFILE
REPORT
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Legendary Retail Brands
to make the independent retailer more successful
Legendary Retail Brands (LRB) has become South Africa’s largest
group of independently owned hardware stores overnight. Johann
Gerber speaks exclusively to LRB.
Legendary Retail Brands (LRB),
started as Burgandy Rose Trading
64 Limited, is the company that
gave Mica a fresh start in 2009
when the Mica members banded
together to purchase the Mica
brand outright from Super Group.
The success of Mica has grown to
such proportions that it has enabled
the Shareholders the opportunity to
look at expanding in a difficult retail
environment by incorporating more
brands into the stable. In 2010, they
bought the House of Paint brand
from Chemspec and in a strategic
move now have incorporated DIY
Depot into this fold.
“For the members of the Groups
it is business as usual,” says
Nareen Daya from LRB. Each subsidiary will operate
independently; however, they will have access to best
practices. “Certain elements will be shared between the
subsidiaries. The combined expertise and vast experience
now in the Group will give us the competitive advantage
that we can pass onto our retailers and the synergy will
benefit all of our customers whilst allowing us to maximise
efficiencies and ensure our long term sustainability.”
It is here that the Directors of LRB, Daya, Gary Tyack
and Dawood Vawda explains LRB’s mission and vision.
“After the Super Group era, Mica aspired to be a company
that cares for its members, We feel that members and
independents were getting the short end of the stick at
the moment. LRB wants to make independent retailers
more successful! The industry is facing an onslaught
from the big box retailers at the moment and being
independent retailers ourselves, care about the survival
of the independents. LRB are the alternative solution to a
corporate environment. LRB are on a mission to rationalise
“We feel that
members are
getting the
short end of
the stick at
the moment.
LRB wants
to make
retailers more
successful”
– Nareen Daya
a very fragmented market whilst encouraging our
members to keep their identities,” says Tyack.
The LRB Group remains committed to supplying
good quality brands sourced from local suppliers
where possible and building a strong unified South
African company. “Our vision is to build a range of strong
exclusive brands that give our retailers opportunities
to differentiate and make margins,” says Daya. LRB’s
subsidiaries are truly South African companies. All were
born and bred in South Africa.
As of 1 October 2013, LRB has over 300 independently
owned retail outlets, spread across the Mica, DIY Depot
and House of Paint brands. This model will allow the
subsidiaries to exist together, but compete at the same
time. Henry Oberholster has been appointed as Managing
Director of Mica and intermediary caretaker for House of
Paint and Alan Reeves Managing Director of DIY Depot.
With this, LRB has increased critical mass in the industry
and the independent retailer all of a sudden has a mean
right hook.