one small voice says don't let them do it

One small voice in WA says don't let your executives waste your money. (Again!).
Now is the time for WOW shareholders to understand and put an urgent stop to your WOW directors putting another mill stone around the neck of your company.

The most dangerous area in retail, is the Electrical appliance retailing sector.
To be specific Woolworths are in current dialogue with
Andrew Muirs family, trading as, "The Good Guys".

It's no secret that WOW have worked out that Dick Smith has been a "profit challenged" business to own. In fact, if the numbers openly presented are correct and Dick Smith has never actually made any sort of loss, then how fortunate for WOW!

Suddenly WOW now think that buying The Good Guys will change all of that.
You can't buy a memory.
(Well you can buy a memory),
but why should WOW be allowed to buy a memory?
Why should people be allowed to set up a business that made money and created wealth for a time and a season?
(Well they should).
Why should WOW then come along and pay an obscene amount of money so The Good Guys walk away laughing?
(Well should they?).

Electrical appliance retailing will never be like food or petrol.
There is no way this industry will ever let two dominant retailers (HVN & WOW) eliminate other retailing channels. (Buying groups).
No way indeed.
WOW would like to aquire The Good Guys, but in doing so will actually have to buy a business that they can't control.
Well, they can't control in it's present form anyhow.

The irony is that Muirs success has been in the individual stores being able to have a massive amount of autonomy.
WOW however, with an almost clinical and sterile approach will only buy The Good Guys business if this is removed from the stores. Thereby killing the very thing that has made the money in the first place.
Placing whitegoods into the hardware channel (Masters) has opened a whole lot of old wounds for the electrical industry.
As strong as Lowes are in the USA, there is no way Australian suppliers are going to go back down the old and rough track of being dictated to by too few retailing partners.
Put simply, if WOW buys The Good Guys and want to run it in such a Profitable and clinical fashion, they will need to expect a total reduction to zero of all other electrical appliance channels. (Buying groups).
My Comment, as a small voice from the West. No one has ever succeeded in doing this in Australia and survived!

Walk away, I say, WOW. You are way to strong and financial for this Billion dollar purchase to weaken you to destruction, but why waste shareholder funds you have been entrusted to spend wisely?