EziBuy Limited

Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail
Founded	1978
Founder	Peter Gillespie Gerard Gillespie
Headquarters	Auckland City 1010 , New Zealand
Key people	Acting MD: Edwina Neilson
Products	Women's clothes, Children's clothes, Men's clothes, Shoes, Accessories, Homeware
Parent	Mosaic Brands
Website	ezibuy.com

EziBuy is a New Zealand and Australian multi-channel retailer. It sells clothing, homeware and gifts through a multi-channel model in both countries. ^[1]

Products can be purchased through catalogues, and four retail stores around New Zealand. ^{[2] [3] [4] [5]} The retailer has a cell centre and distribution centre in Palmerston North, where it has been based since its inception in 1979. ^{[6] [7] [4]}

EziBuy featured a wide selection of brands such as Capture, Emerge, Urban and Grace Hill as well as Profile – a corporate clothing company and a shareholding in JK Kids, a nationwide children’s clothing chain. For plus-sized women Ezibuy had Sara, Formfit, Deesse, Isobar Active Plus and Quayside Plus Size. ^[1]

History

Gillespie era

EziBuy was established in 1978 by brothers Peter and Gerard Gillespie, and their friend John Robinson in Palmerston North, New Zealand. The business began as a catalogue retailer selling womenswear and menswear. The first catalogue was a simple folded, A3 black and white page which was mailed to a list of local organisations in 1978. ^{[8] [9]} The Gillespies were joined five years later by Matt Toynbee who they later acknowledged for his huge contribution to the company. ^[10]

In January 2002, EziBuy purchased Myer Direct from Coles Myer. ^[11]

In January 2006, the company opened a new distribution centre in Palmerston North. ^[6]

In 2007 Ezibuy purchased the womenswear retail chain Max Fashions.

EziBuy won the Keith Norris Direct Marketing Organisation of the Year Award in 2012. ^{[12] [13]}

Woolworths era

In August 2013, EziBuy was acquired by Woolworths Limited. ^{[14] [15]}

At the time of sale, EziBuy was the largest fashion and homeware multi-channel retailer in Australasia. The business mailed over 23 million catalogues every year and processed more than 1.75 million orders annually. ^[16]

Alceon era

In June 2017, EziBuy was acquired by Alceon Group, a major shareholder of Australian womenswear retailer Noni B, ^[17] for an undisclosed sum. ^[18]

In October 2018, Alceon purchased New Zealand children's clothing retailer Pumpkin Patch for an undisclosed sum, allowing it to relaunch the brand through EziBuy. ^[19]

Noni B and Mosaic era

Noni B Limited purchased a 50.1 per cent stake in EziBuy from Alceon Group in a $1 peppercorn sale in 2019. ^[20] The sale was aimed at increasing the retailer's digital sales and giving it access to the New Zealand market. ^[21] Noni B Limited changed its name to Mosaic Brands in November 2019 and purchased the remaining 49.9 per cent stake for $11 million in October 2021. ^{[22] [23]}

In August 2021, EziBuy announced a restructure after posting a $28.9 million loss for the year to June 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. ^[4]

In April 2023, Mosaic placed EziBuy into administration, with plans to restructure it. ^[24] With this the remaining stores were closed down and the retailer went online only. ^[25]

The brand entered liquidation in July 2023 with creditors owed more than $100 million. ^{[26] [27]}

References

External links

• Official website