Both teams deserved to be playing off in the Grand Final because not just this year, but for a number of years now, each club has meticulously worked on a plan that would put them into a Grand Final and ultimately lead to a Premiership.
As has been quoted many times, competition at the highest level is about 'inches' ...... it is about gaining many small wins within the whole contest. We saw it on Saturday with the slippery conditions forcing many diving saves, desperate kicks and handballs that for the winner hit the mark just a few more times than the gallant Saints. And yes, St. Kilda will hopefully be back in the G.F. next year better, stronger and really hungry for a Premiership. But (as in Business) there are no guarantees. Sport at this highest level is a very serious business. I’m involved in an Amateur football Club and even at that level we take things seriously and a winning culture has been nurtured over many years through a lot of hard work and hard decisions.
Bowens is in a very competitive Industry and our success over a number of years has been due to a lot of hard work and good planning. We are never going to ‘win’ unless we continue to be focused and disciplined like our sporty equivalents. A win in the timber and building supplies game is not about a ‘one-off’ victory that a sporting club might be satisfied with. We have to continue to perform year after year if we want to sustain and grow our business for the benefit of all our people as well as the owners of the business.
Since the Company began in 1894 the attitude of its owners has been about steady yet conservative growth.
At times it was about mere survival too, but today the company is in a good position due to the greater percentage of profits over the years being re-invested in the business. The money that has been made in recent years has been used to buy land and build two new branches at Laverton and Epping. Add the purchase of businesses in Shepparton and at Cowes plus a North Melbourne re-build and building improvements at other locations – all without having to rely too much on borrowing money. Our debt level is low because my brother and I believe in the need to re-invest most of our profits and not rely too heavily on our bank.
The Industry now faces the threat of even greater competition. Woolworths ‘play’ into the market of hardware and building supplies might appear to be directed at DIY but I can assure anyone that wants to listen that it will not be a ripple effect on our markets, but more like a tsunami! Trade is our focus but we do need an element of ‘retail’ to bring about some balance in our gross margin and some cash flow into the system. At the same time there is no certainty that Woolworths/Lowes will not look towards some trade business. And competition for our supplies of timber and all building products will be keen with Woolworths no doubt looking for ‘deals’ and some position of advantage.
I am not totally pessimistic about this onslaught from a powerful new player in hardware, but I do know that Bowens will have to make absolutely certain that we operate our business with a fair degree of discipline.
We will need to fight for every sale and ensure that we will deliver ‘on time, in full! Our recently developed Visions and Values statement which includes that commitment has been launched at a very appropriate time. All our staff have been involved in the development of this initiative which includes the need for control of expenses as well as the need to maximize every opportunity for a sale.
The Managing Director and I made a commitment at the start of the year to do everything we could to secure the employment of all our staff (non-performers not included!). We have done that but with the job made easier due to a Victoria economy (Melbourne in particular) being far more buoyant than expected. If our economy continues to grow then life will be a little easier but that doesn’t mean we can relax at any stage.
A Company’s success today, and in the future, will only happen if all disciplines are adhered to. Costs in particular must be kept under control– ‘lean and mean’ is the catch-cry when it comes to running a trade dominated, low margin, business. Bowens cannot allow any of our competitors – from a Woolworths to the local timber yard down the road – to have an advantage in buying, in selling, in payroll costs (our biggest cost) or any other major expense area.
We must also continue to upgrade our Branches and to this extent much of our future profits will be directed towards rebuilds at Croydon and Rowville, and making certain that all our facilities meet the expectations of our customers and, just as importantly, our staff. On that point I would like to highlight the magnificent job being done by our men and women at Croydon and Rowville, as both branches continue to perform well despite inferior, inefficient and old facilities.
I recently visited the North Melbourne Football Club's facilities at Arden St., North Melbourne. Just as we have done across the way in Macauley Rd., the N.M.F.C is pulling down the old and moving into new buildings that will take the battling Club into the modern era!
So, off the field they have realized that unless the Club can provide the best facilities for their players and staff they will not be able to survive, let alone be in a position to ever compete with the Geelongs' and the St. Kildas'.
What we have done with our North Melbourne Bowens Branch is provide a completely new and 'friendly' efficient facility for customers and staff alike. From this point on, as the N.M.F.C. will have to do, we need to have the disciplines to run the operation efficiently, to employ the right people (players ) who have the skills and the willingness to give us that important 'point of difference'.
For all I know Bowens could have a Woolworths/Lowes happening in all our key areas ---- enough that we have so much competition already! There is just no margin for error – we need everyone “on alert” and following all the disciplines required for Bowens to remain in the hunt and, if possible, on top of the Building Supplies Premiership ladder.