CBD
Mwah! Mwah! Fabulous darling! Fashion designer Kym Ellery squared off against department store Myer in the Victorian Supreme Court on Monday as Australia's most on-trend trial got under way.
Myer says it has an exclusive deal with the fashionista and is trying to stop her flogging her wares through rival David Jones.
But you'd barely know there was any strife from a "backgrounder" sent out by Ellery's flack, Robyn Catinella of EVH PR. The 1690-word document waxes lyrical about Ellery's "innate sense of style and fashion-forward designs", "daring combinations of textures", her "multi-faceted collection that combined modernity with classicism", the "effortlessly chic attitude" of her brand and even the "hand-crafted, maple timber parquetry ceiling, mirrored pyramid walls, deconstructed white brick and Belgium linen drapes" gracing her shop, leaving just 29 words to spare when it came to the actual matter before the court. And those words are just an instruction to contact Norton Rose partner Stephen Klotz for more information.
True rumour
Last month CBD brought news that QBE was shifting headquarters from its creaking Pitt Street building to the posh new 8 Chifley Square in Sydney - a nugget dismissed by the insurer's PR operative as mere speculation. So speculative was this information that on Monday Chifley Square co-owner Mirvac pointed out QBE had signed on for the top four floors of the 30-storey tower. The higher altitude is presumably so QBE can spot storms before they give trouble.
Manly leader
Sydney-based website Aquabumps posts daily photos of the city's beaches to its online newsletter. Office workers who subscribe get a daily reminder of what they are missing: the beach, with great photos and a few paragraphs. As they say in their self-description, "Aquabumps depicts images of waves, surfers (good and bad), swimmers, sunrises and whatever happens in the wee hours down the beach every weekday." On Monday at Manly they encountered one surfer. "I surfed with Opposition Leader Tony Abbott this morning. I sure hope he's better at running a government than surfing." Was Abbott threatening to stop the waves?
HTM looks to risk
What's the old saying about being better to be a client of a stockbroker than to own one? After a string of losses and months of soul-searching, stockbroker Wilson HTM declared on Monday it still had faith in free markets. "After due consideration it [Wilson HTM] has concluded that it is in the best interests of shareholders for the group to remain listed on the Australian Securities Exchange," chief Andrew Coppin told investors. Wilson's investors are mostly the broker's staff and near-20 per cent owner Deutsche Bank. With gold taking a beating, Coppin said, investor appetite for risk was returning. Wilson's brokerage volumes are up 22 per cent in the past year.
Crown prince
James Packer's listed gaming empire Crown no longer has substantial shareholders apart from Slim Jim after Perpetual continued its selldown from 8.5 per cent in September.
The relationship between Perpetual and Crown probably never recovered from differences of opinion over Crown's Echo Entertainment Group brawl. Last year, Perpetual refused to support Packer's attempts to roll Echo's chairman, John Story, and the billionaire's thwarted push to install his representative, Jeff Kennett, on the board. All this led to radio parrot Alan Jones' outburst against Perpetual bigwig Matt Williams, accusing one of Australia's top stock-pickers of lacking experience and judgment.
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Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
The article reports a Victorian Supreme Court dispute in which department store Myer says it has an exclusive deal with designer Kym Ellery and is trying to stop her selling through rival David Jones. Investors in retail stocks should watch such legal fights because they can affect brand relationships, distribution channels and a retailer's merchandising strategy, though the piece notes much of Ellery's public material was PR copy rather than case detail.
No — the article points out Ellery's PR backgrounder was long on brand description (about design, store décor and attitude) but left only a few words about the actual court matter, directing enquiries to her lawyer. There were no substantive legal details disclosed in that publicity material.
The article notes a report that QBE was shifting headquarters to the new 8 Chifley Square tower. QBE's PR called the story speculation, but Mirvac — a co-owner of Chifley Square — said QBE had signed on for the top four floors, which suggests a possible move. The article doesn’t state a formal confirmation from QBE.
According to the article, Mirvac pointed out QBE had signed for the top four floors, which is a positive leasing development for the building owner. For property investors, large corporate leases like this can support rental income and building valuation, while for equity investors it’s a sign of tenant demand — though the article treats the news as partly speculative.
Wilson HTM decided that it was in shareholders’ best interests to remain listed after a period of losses and internal review. CEO Andrew Coppin said investor appetite for risk was returning, and the firm reported brokerage volumes were up 22% over the past year. For everyday investors, that signals renewed activity in markets and that the broker expects benefit from being a public company.
The article says Wilson HTM’s investors are mostly the broker’s staff and that Deutsche Bank owns close to 20%. This ownership mix can influence strategic decisions, such as the recent choice to stay on the ASX.
Perpetual has continued selling down its stake in Crown from 8.5% held in September, and the article says Crown no longer has substantial shareholders other than James Packer ('Slim Jim'). For Crown investors, the reduction of a large institutional holder may change governance dynamics and reduce activist oversight — something to monitor if you hold the stock.
The article links Perpetual’s selldown to a strained relationship with James Packer after disagreements over the Echo Entertainment Group dispute — including Perpetual’s refusal to support Packer’s board-change efforts last year. It doesn’t provide financial reasons for the sell-down, only the history of the governance clash.
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