1. Newassociationtostreamlineshopfitting
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
A new organisation has been launched that
aims to demystify and declutter shopfitting
and streamline the shopfitting process for
retailers, shopfitters, and store designers.
ANTS, which stands for ‘Australian Network
Tendering Solutions’, is the brainchild of
Jessica Balasa, who has worked in shopfitting
for nearly a decade, and shopfitting industry
veteran, Will Harich. Balasa is Director
at ANTS, while Harich will act as Global
Business Development Manager.
Nearly two years in the making, ANTS seeks
to achieve greater transparency between
retailers, shopfitters, lessors and designers.
ANTS will act as a trusted matchmaking
service, of sorts, that will connect retailers
with pre-approved shopfitters, designers
and tradies who have been put through a
stringent vetting process to ensure they can
deliver on service, quality and experience.
The organisation will also conduct education
and networking initiatives aimed at helping
retailers learn more about the shopfitting
industry.
Balasa and Harich developed the ANTS
concept as a reaction to observed
inefficiencies in the shopfitting industry.
“Will and I have worked for a number of
shopfitting companies, both medium and
large, and were amazed at how inefficient
some were, continually disappointing clients
through not being able to deliver tender
requests in peak seasons, mainly due to
taking on too much work without the correct
structures in place,” Balasa said.
“Over the last 40 years the shopfitting
industry has been resistant to change,”
Harich added. “While the industry has
grown, the way we do things hasn’t
changed. There hasn’t been anyone to
stand up and show both the shopfitters and
retailers that there is room for improvement.
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continued on p.2.
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2. NEWSContinued...
“ANTS is impartial to all parties – it’s simply
a service that offers delivery. For retailers,
it’s the opportunity to work with a company
that has researched their members, and
who can be trusted within the industry.
They may not be mainstream shopfitters,
yet their portfolios are impressive.”
Beyond avoiding inefficiencies, retailers
who engage ANTS (at not cost to the
retailer) for their store fitout and redesign
jobs can also benefit from a level of trust
that may not otherwise be present in the
transaction. Balasa said that it’s common
in the shopfitting industry for less than
reputable operators to go into liquidation,
only to emerge under a new name within
12 months and continue trading with a
‘clean’ track record. However, this may not
be common knowledge to clients, and can
lead to a lack of trust for retailers.
“The key is trust, honesty and the ability to
deliver when working with clients [retailers
and hospitality venues],” she said. “Some
went into liquidation half way through
projects, leaving the clients and lessors
with major headaches – unfinished projects,
the need to appoint a new shopfitter, loss of
deposits and delays in opening.”
“In the shopfitting industry I noticed that
the companies I was working for weren’t
able to keep up with the amount of work
being generated, and in turn we were letting
clients down,” Harich added. “Furthermore,
when work was quiet I was required to go
and chase the same clients that we had let
down previously. This wasn’t the foundation
to cementing long-term relationships.”
ANTS is building a network of five
shopfitters or project management
companies in each state and has to date
signed up shopfitters in Victoria, NSW and
Queensland.
The ANTS vetting process for shopfitters
involves pre-qualification, followed by
investigating their business, answering a
stream of questions, talking to their existing
clients, and then visiting their facilities.
“Some of these companies are state-
based and others national – this way
no one should be over committed and
we have the resources to draw from
during peak season within the shopfitting
industry,” Balasa said.
“The goal is to have a number of pre-
qualified, quality shopfitting companies
around Australia. We still have opportunities
in each state and our network is national for
both shopfitters and designers.”
ANTS, which is headquartered in
Melbourne and also has offices in Sydney
and on the Gold Coast, delegates tendering
opportunities based on shopfitters
strengths and skill sets, coupled with their
ability to deliver the projects.
Vanessa Cullen, a Sydney-based designer
who runs her own design company and was
one of the first designers to partner with
ANTS, said that being able to offer tenders
to a list of pre-approved shopfitters will
help streamline the overall process from the
retailers’ perspective.
“Currently we run tenders in-house, but
far too often we struggle with invited
shopfitters failing to provide their
quotations on time, or declining the
invitation at the last minute,” Cullen said.
“ANTS have selected motivated shopfitters
and have put the processes in place to
ensure structured quoting that should be
easier for both designers and clients to
understand and compare.
“I believe ANTS is a great resource for store
designers looking to outsource the tender
process while still offering this service to
their clientele.”
A win for retailers
While shopfitters pay an annual
membership fee to ANTS, retailers can
engage the organisation at no cost. The
primary tendering service at the centre of
ANTS is free for retailers to access.
“We understand that costs for a retailer are
astronomical, from leasing, design, council
requirements and the fitout itself,” Balasa
said. “Our tendering service is at no charge
to our clients.
“We have seen over the years that retailers
struggle to receive tenders – we know our
shopfitters’ workflow and their upcoming
projects and where there might be
gaps. It’s simply a phone call to ANTS, a
discussion about the project, and we are on
our way.”
ANTS will provide at least three to four
tenders from well-established companies per
project. The client has one point of contact at
ANTS, who will run the tendering process.
“All quotes are vetted by ANTS to ensure
all elements are covered, creating an even
playing field and minimising variations.
“Quotes will then be handed direct to the
2 |INSIDERETAILWEEKLY|WWW.INSIDERETAIL.COM.AU
INSIDERETAILWEEKLY
Jessica Balasa, Director, ANTS

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New Victorian public holidays pose retail headaches BY CLAIRE HIBBIT
Much to the dismay of retailers and small
business owners, Grand Final Friday, known
as Football Friday, and Easter Sunday have
both been declared Victoria’s newest public
holidays, with industry groups labelling the
announcement “a headache, not a holiday”,
and describing the subsequent penalty rate
rises as “unsustainable”.
The newly instated grand final eve public
holiday, which lands on Friday, October
2 this year, and Easter Sunday, March 27,
2016, were confirmed by Victorian Small
Business Minister, Philip Dalidakis, late last
week following a consultation period.
The announcement takes Victoria’s public
holidays to 13 a year – the most of any
state. Retailers who do decide to open
their doors and trade on Grand Final Friday,
which was formerly considered an ordinary
trading day, and Easter Sunday, previously
double time, next year will now be forced to
pay at least double time and a half in hourly
wages for their workers.
The Victorian Government said the new
public holidays will, “deliver massive
benefits across the state, boosting regional
tourism and giving Victorians more quality
time to spend with their families and
friends”. The public holidays will be officially
introduced via a notice in the Government
Gazette, allowing Victorian businesses time
to put in place their trading arrangements
and to organise employee rosters.
Dalidakis said the government was keeping
its election promotion by introducing
the holidays, with there to be no trading
restrictions imposed on either of these
public holidays. “Whether businesses
open or close is entirely a matter for them,”
Dalidakis said.
The Master Grocers Australia / Liquor
Retailers Australia (MGA) said that
increasing the number of public holidays
in Victoria is shaping to be a “financial
disaster” for independent retailers.
“The Andrews Government might argue
that there are social and economic
benefits for Victoria by introducing
additional state public holidays, but
there is also a massive downside for
employers,” Jos de Bruin, CEO, MGA
Independent Retailers, said.
De Bruin said the declaration of Easter
Sunday as a public holiday has cost MGA
members more than $1.4 million in additional
wages, adding that for first time in recent
memory, many smaller independent
supermarkets and liquor stores were closed
for trading on Easter Sunday.
“Should the Friday before the AFL Grand
Final become a public holiday, this will cost
our members, independent supermarkets,
and liquor stores, more than $3.2 million
in additional wages. In fact, for a full-time
employee it will cost an additional $28.48
an hour. This is economic vandalism and is
simply unsustainable for small businesses, let
alone big businesses to absorb,” he said.
“This is a poor economic decision at a time
when unemployment figures are increasing,
productivity levels are declining, and there
is increasing homelessness amongst young
client to keep it transparent and above board
– no additional margins or charges from
ANTS on top of the shopfitters quotes.”
The client then decides which shopfitter
to engage for their service requirements,
based on price, service location, and
reputation.
Additional ANTS services, such as project
management and maintenance programs,
are available at a cost to the retailer. These
services are aimed at helping retailers
better plan their shopfitting work. Balasa
said that retailers can easily get caught
out by signing leases prematurely, while
underestimating the time required to fit out
their newly leased space.
“Many do not take into consideration
the four to eight weeks required to have
drawings approved by the regulatory
identities, then the two weeks for the
tendering process – all before anything can
commence onsite,” she said. “Then there’s
usually a four to six week fitout period,
depending on project requirements.
“The industry has seen many clients paying
rent from day one, so the added pressure
on all parties is abhorrent and causes much
friction. We work within a multi-billion dollar
industry and it’s well overdue that a more
professional approach is taken.”
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