Dick Smith in store decline

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#1461621 5-Jan-2016 13:16

sir1963:
sdav:
Kyanar:
They also confirm that stores will no longer honour gift cards and vouchers, and that if you have paid a deposit that your money is now forfeited to the receivers. A statement that if you ask me should be illegal. Gentlemen, start your chargebacks.

I don't have any gift cards, but I agree.

It's not like all the parties with a financial interest just decided to go into receivership today. It's possible the company/investors/receivers were willingly selling gift cards throughout the busiest shopping period of the year with the intention of not honouring them. That is reckless, but how to do you prove it?

It's not like their CGA obligations have ceased while their doors are still open. Anyone can return a product right now and be reimbursed, so why not gift cards?

IANAL so would be interested to know what a gift card is considered and whether you can truly fine print your way out of honouring them.

Gift cards makes you a non secured creditor.
Its just another way for the big players to push losses down onto the small players.

The ONLY gift card worth its money are the ones issued by the Reserve Bank, i.e. Cash.
It allows you to shop in any location.
It guarantees you change if the value of the item is less than the value of the "gift card" (Some Gift cards say they do NOT give out change!)
and you can even bank it to earn interest on it while you wait for something worth buying.

Yeah that's why I hate gift cards, should be banned. They are not convenient when they start having expiry dates, just give family/friends cash if you must haha!

mattwnz

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#1461623 5-Jan-2016 13:17

Anyone know if the stores are currently open? They were giving new customers over Xmas, a $5 gift voucher if you signed up to their email newsletters, so I suspect those are void. Just glad I chased them up for my order, as it took them nearly a month to deliver, and had to go to their management to get it. I suspect there will be a few people who haven't got their orders, and I suspect they may become unsecured creditors.

mattwnz

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#1461625 5-Jan-2016 13:19

sdav:
sir1963:
sdav:
Kyanar:
They also confirm that stores will no longer honour gift cards and vouchers, and that if you have paid a deposit that your money is now forfeited to the receivers. A statement that if you ask me should be illegal. Gentlemen, start your chargebacks.

I don't have any gift cards, but I agree.

It's not like all the parties with a financial interest just decided to go into receivership today. It's possible the company/investors/receivers were willingly selling gift cards throughout the busiest shopping period of the year with the intention of not honouring them. That is reckless, but how to do you prove it?

It's not like their CGA obligations have ceased while their doors are still open. Anyone can return a product right now and be reimbursed, so why not gift cards?

IANAL so would be interested to know what a gift card is considered and whether you can truly fine print your way out of honouring them.

Gift cards makes you a non secured creditor.
Its just another way for the big players to push losses down onto the small players.

The ONLY gift card worth its money are the ones issued by the Reserve Bank, i.e. Cash.
It allows you to shop in any location.
It guarantees you change if the value of the item is less than the value of the "gift card" (Some Gift cards say they do NOT give out change!)
and you can even bank it to earn interest on it while you wait for something worth buying.

Yeah that's why I hate gift cards, should be banned. They are not convenient when they start having expiry dates, just give family/friends cash if you must haha!

Gift cards are great for business though, as so many people get them and never use them before their expiry. I don't know why they have expiry dates, and I don't think that should be allowed, as usually you pay cash for them, which doesn't have an expiry date. Some of the best companies though don't put expiry dates on their vouchers. It's another thing in NZ that needs some regulation. Something like requiring that the money paid for them remains in a trust account, or something. But there is a long list of similar things in NZ retail that need regulation, that aren't good for consumers. eg Franchises, price match guarantees, etc.

tdgeek

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#1461627 5-Jan-2016 13:21

mattwnz:

Anyone know if the stores are currently open? They were giving new customers over Xmas, a $5 gift voucher if you signed up to their email newsletters, so I suspect those are void. Just glad I chased them up for my order, as it took them nearly a month to deliver, and had to go to their management to get it. I suspect there will be a few people who haven't got their orders, and I suspect they may become unsecured creditors.

If its under administration, there is an option to continue trading if thats likely to reap more funds that liquidating. So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

mattwnz

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#1461629 5-Jan-2016 13:27

tdgeek:
mattwnz:

Anyone know if the stores are currently open? They were giving new customers over Xmas, a $5 gift voucher if you signed up to their email newsletters, so I suspect those are void. Just glad I chased them up for my order, as it took them nearly a month to deliver, and had to go to their management to get it. I suspect there will be a few people who haven't got their orders, and I suspect they may become unsecured creditors.

If its under administration, there is an option to continue trading if thats likely to reap more funds that liquidating. So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

It says receivership on the NZ herald website, and that the banks called in the receivers. So no administration or liquaidation.

" The outlook appears grim for the transtasman retailer after its banks appointed Ferrier Hodgson as receivers."

I think they will get more money selling stock instore, than in any other way. Probably won't see the sort of previous discounting though I suspect.

floydbloke

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#1461650 5-Jan-2016 13:36

mattwnz:...
" The outlook appears grim for the transtasman retailer after its banks appointed Ferrier Hodgson as receivers."
...

I wonder if next month's tournament will be called the "Ferrier Hodgson NRL Auckland Nines"?

Sometimes I use big words I don't always fully understand in an effort to make myself sound more photosynthesis.

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dafman

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#1461651 5-Jan-2016 13:36

networkn: Surely the new owners would have financial recourse against the old owners for financial misrepresentation?

Unlikely me thinks. Although it looks like the private equity owners dressed up a lemon, probably not illegal, and nothing that effective due diligence wouldn't have picked up - afterall, the foragerfunds analyst nutted it out easily enough.

If you invest in the sharemarket, this is a good lesson. In my view, you would have to be nuts to invest in any company bought up and flicked on by private equity.

dafman

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#1461656 5-Jan-2016 13:46

tdgeek:
EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

You're joking, right? Maybe exchanging cash at a DSE for actual goods on a shelf you can walk out with. Any other transaction, not something I would recommend.

Jaxson

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#1461662 5-Jan-2016 13:57

Reminds me of Mainzeal. Once a company is in receivership, the doors are locked and everything inside belongs to them, to sell off in a bid to return as much money as possible to investors.
It gets real messy after that. If I worked at DSE I wouldn't leave anything of mine there afterhours for example.

Fully agree about the gift cards, and how rough that is.
The problem is the money spent to purchase those has gone, and may not be there even to refund them etc.

This hurts lots of people, staff and reps/merchandisers paid to visit the stores also etc.

Kyanar

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#1461671 5-Jan-2016 14:09

tdgeek:

So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

Uh, no. The receivers have already announced that no vouchers or gift cards will be honoured.

michaelmurfy

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#1461672 5-Jan-2016 14:12

Kyanar:
tdgeek:

So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

Uh, no. The receivers have already announced that no vouchers or gift cards will be honoured.

How can they get away with this? Pretty lame for those unlucky enough to get vouchers for Xmas...

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Krishant007

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#1461674 5-Jan-2016 14:13

Id feel worse for those customers that got the extended warranties :|. mind you, they shouldnt have been dooped into getting the extended warranty in the first place.

Jaxson

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#1461675 5-Jan-2016 14:13

michaelmurfy:
Kyanar:

Uh, no. The receivers have already announced that no vouchers or gift cards will be honoured.

How can they get away with this?

The company can't pay it's bills, someone else comes in to manage them, they place a priority on refunding money to investors over customers.

sdav

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#1461681 5-Jan-2016 14:17

michaelmurfy:
Kyanar:
tdgeek:

So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

Uh, no. The receivers have already announced that no vouchers or gift cards will be honoured.

How can they get away with this? Pretty lame for those unlucky enough to get vouchers for Xmas...

That was my point earlier. Given the time of year and the fact they have "suddenly" gone into "voluntary administration" it kind of reeks.

michaelmurfy

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#1461683 5-Jan-2016 14:22

sdav:
michaelmurfy:
Kyanar:
tdgeek:

So the voucher should be ok, subject to any fine print. And thus the employees would be in a better position

EDIT Right now, this is an Australian store issue, so BAU here. For now. Get buying and cashing them in

Uh, no. The receivers have already announced that no vouchers or gift cards will be honoured.

How can they get away with this? Pretty lame for those unlucky enough to get vouchers for Xmas...
That was my point earlier. Given the time of year and the fact they have "suddenly" gone into "voluntary administration" it kind of reeks.

It is more the "customers" who purchased gift cards arguably are investors too. The gift card page on their website now turns up with a 404 error.

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