Creating business where you least expect it
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3 YOUR DTORES, OUR WORLD
YOUR STORES, OUR WORLD
Hudson is a leading, award-winning representative of global brands in Africa, Italy and Malta. Nike, New Look, Timberland, Converse, Tommy Hilfiger and Esprit are some of the key brands currently managed by the Group. Hudson has three decades of experience in branded fashion and sportswear, in retail and distribution in Africa, Italy and Malta. We are an international team proud of our social and cultural affinities that have allowed us to understand the markets we operate in and get the best results for our partners. We have solid-working relationships throughout these territories and are able to nurture opportunities successfully. We are committed to continuously strengthen our relationship with our brands and customers through hard work, honesty and integrity. We are a global organisation that is socially and environmentally responsible, that embraces creativity and diversity and is rewarding for stakeholders. We are dedicated to delivering outstanding results in some of the world’s most difficult markets.
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5 OUR BRAND EXPERIENCE
Our experience, YOUR MERCHANDISE Our executive team has extensive experience in managing retail and wholesale distribution, in marketing and brand development activities and general commercial practice. Alfie Borg
Chris Muscat
Alfie Borg joined Time International Co Ltd in 1984 as a sales representative and together with Daniel Reginiano built the company into one of Malta’s leading distributors and retailers. Acquiring a portfolio of worldleading brands allowed them to transform the fledgling company into one of the biggest players on the local market.
Chris joined Hudson Holdings Ltd in 2006 as a shareholder following the management buyout. Coming from a background in finance, Chris took charge of the accounting function while assisting with the growth of various business ventures that significantly expanded the Group’s profile and turnover. In 2011 Chris was appointed Group Chief Operating Officer with the remit to oversee the operational activities and business units of the Group. Chris also acts as the Goup’s Commercial Director and is actively involved in growing the various business units across the organisation with a specific focus in the sportswear business. Before joining Hudson, Chris served as a senior manager at Deloitte.
CEO and Founder
In 2006 Alfie led the management buyout of Time forming a new holding company, Hudson Holdings Ltd, along with key handpicked shareholders. Over the years Alfie has established a standard of networking excellence made up of great brands and great people that was and remains instrumental in successfully taking Nike and other great brands across the Maghreb, Italy and Malta. .
COO
Kevin Grech
Director Head of Fashion Retail and Libya operations Kevin joined Hudson Holdings in 2008 as a shareholder. Coming with extensive experience in retail, Kevin took charge of diversification and business development, with a focus on fashion retail. Kevin also took charge of a new joint venture in Libya and has since expanded group operations there. He continues to oversee Libya and is well positioned to take advantage of new opportunities that will be available from this emerging economy. Prior to Hudson, Kevin served as founding General Manager at Arkadia, a successful mixed retail development owned by one of Malta’s biggest multi-brand groups.
George Amato Director
George joined Hudson Holdings in 2004 as General Manager later becoming a shareholder of Hudson Holdings during the management buyout. With a background in manufacturing he brought an added dimension to the company helping it to prepare for the management buyout by overhauling working procedures. Today, George is responsible for the logistics, stores and inventory side of the business, together with the property portfolio. Before joining Time International, George was Managing Director for a furniture manufacturing business, followed by a clothing manufacturing company where he was responsible for growing turnover and profitability. In 2004 he decided to leave manufacturing and join the retail sector.
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7 THE CENTRE OF OUR OPERATION
The centre of our operation: THE HEART OF THE MED, AT THE CROSSROADS OF EUROPE AND AFRICA Our Head Office in Malta is the hub of our operation. Our logistics, purchasing, finance and sales management teams are based here but travel extensively and regularly within our markets to maintain a high quality of support and service. These teams are supported by real-time business intelligence to ensure the highest level of control and performance analysis. Being based in Malta affords us many advantages. Malta is in the path of the major shipping routes serving Europe, Africa and the Far East. Our culture is a homogenous mix with a strong English and European influence but with an understanding of the Arab culture thanks to our proximity and history. International trade has been the backbone of our existence, with Africa
and Europe the largest trading partners for centuries. Malta is politically stable, has a strong communication and IT infrastructure and benefits from solid financial institutions geared towards international trade. Malta has a sophisticated financial services framework that has enticed business operations from across the globe. As part of the European Union, our legal system and support
structures are harmonised and offer partners the security and standards that they can expect from any developed country. Combining a Western work ethic and can-do attitude with an understanding of the culture of our neighbours, we are ideally placed to be the ‘go-between’ for brands wishing to leverage the opportunity the region offers.
Italy
Malta Algeria Morocco
Tunisia Libya
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WHY WORK WITH HUDSON?
Why work with Hudson? Hudson’s focus is on the development of Brands, mainly in the fashion and sportswear sectors. We take time to understand the Brand first and foremost, identify the potential consumer and create distribution strategies and retail experiences, to roll out the Brand in target territories. Our focus markets are North Africa, specifically Libya, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia where we have satellite offices, people on the ground, a wealth of experience and strong local partners with whom we can make the difference. We recruit experienced multicultural and multinational personnel to make the Hudson team a truly international and knowledgeable team focused on results. We deliver the results that our partners expect and give them the peace of mind that they demand.
We know the region.
We know the business.
We are integrated and have cultural affinities within the markets in which we operate and are tuned into the way of doing business in these markets. We are familiar with the procedures, legislation and practices that are often complex and fluid. We understand these markets and have operated in them for years enabling us to build our experiences and network. We have learnt how to deal with the regular difficulties and hurdles that we face resulting from the difficult markets that we operate in. We take these in our stride and learn from our experiences. The results that we have achieved are proof of this. The growth that we have planned shows our confidence to continue to deliver amongst these many challenges.
Not only does Hudson have extensive retail and distribution experience built over the last three decades but our experience is specifically directed at introducing brands and building them in these new and challenging markets, through the right mix of retail and distribution channels.
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11 HUDSON TMELINE
HUDSON TIMELINE We have worked with high-street names from day one and over the years have taken our own brand of operating to maximise the Brands we have been trusted to represent, in markets that present an unrivalled growth opportunity. • Tommy Hilfiger North Africa • Hudson Group Formation
• Swatch Malta
1985
• Nike Malta
1987
• Converse Malta
1992
• Urban Jungle Malta
1993
• Oakley Malta
1996
• Nike Libya
2004
• Esprit Libya
• Nike Algeria
• Timberland Malta
• Converse North Africa
• Urban Jungle Italy
• Crocs Malta
• Timberland Algeria
2006
2007
2008
• Nike Morocco • New Look Malta
2010
• Nike Tunisia
2011
Growth in retail turnover in the last 5 years
• Parfois Libya • New Look Libya
2012
• Levis Algeria
2013
1600%
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13 THE NIKE STORY
The NIKE Story We sold our first pair of Nike in Malta in 1987. Since then, we have slowly taken over or managed Nike’s distribution in most of the North African region. The strength of the Nike brand lies in quality, innovation and marketing. We share their brand values and live them everyday throughout our organisation. We successfully developed this brand, moving from one store to becoming the largest distribution manager in Africa, bar none.
We Know Your Business Having built the Nike brand through the decades, we understand the various needs and requirements that a brand demands. We understand our partner’s brand values, logistical and system needs and uphold them in all our interactions with the market. Our systems
offer the flexibility to integrate with those of our partners, ensuring the highest levels of productivity and the minimisation of process friction. With established offices on the ground, we know where and how the consumer lives. We know the country
you don’t see on the news. We know how to reach them socially, mentally and logistically. We now know how to reach the consumer with the right product through the right medium.
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15 IN STORE IN TIME
IN STORE, IN TIME Hudson has a strong network of logistics partners and handles deliveries directly from your warehouses to relevant stores, managing the complete cycle through customs, finance and consignment. Our setup means your merchandise is in store, in time to meet customer demands. Our service is tailor made. We use our head office in Malta as a training centre for our African partners. We manage the staffing holistically covering recruitment, training, employment procedures and retention. We maintain high standards of staff training and recruitment to ensure that we have the right personnel to handle the brand requirements.
Our experienced buyers and merchandisers form the heart of this operation. We understand sales patterns, trade calendars and preferences for styles, colours and sizes in the different markets and reflect this in our ordering and stocking. We work with our supply and sales partners to maximise the opportunities for our brands.
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17 BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS TO BUSINESS
BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS TO BUSINESS Building a presence from the ground up can sometimes be literal. We have managed numerous projects whereby sites are identified, buildings are designed, plans approved, construction completed and shops fitted to exacting brand standards. We understand the sensitivities and cultural requirements in the markets that we trade. We are confident in selecting and working with brands and product that well suits these markets. We go one step further by also selecting the right partners with whom
to work in each territory to supplement the local advantage that we may need. It goes even deeper than this. Location is key and this is factored into our selection process; the most suitable locations are chosen to carry forward the success of the brands that we represent.
For those in the West it’s hard to imagine a minute without the Internet. Some of the markets we operate in do not have full Internet access and indeed, some don’t have any. This results in greater challenges in communicating your brand message but this can also be an advantage
if you know how to play it. Hudson knows which are the most effective and appropriate channels and forms of advertising to meet the needs of your message to your customers in these markets.
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19 STYLING A CONTINENT
STYLING A CONTINENT We know the customer’s shopping habits and preferences. We know what days, what times, and how long they spend in the shops as well as how much they spend and what types of products they buy. Having experienced consumer habits with a number of brands and products in these markets, our buying and merchandising teams optimise accordingly, to maximise sales, margins and sell-through. We manage stock levels and
mark downs in line with our projected stock turn to ensure that we deliver the right brand message at the right time. We know the nuances of each market and can manage stock to meet customers’ needs. The way staff behave towards
different types of customers varies by country. We know how friendly staff should be and how they should interact with differing cultures, sexes and even age groups. We reflect these cultural subtleties in the staff training provided.
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WE JUMP IN WITH BOTH FEET Our staff live and travel extensively within the region allowing each and every one of them to absorb the culture, needs and expectations of the market. We’ve got our fingers on the pulse. We appreciate what it takes to manage staff, the diversity and complexity that castes and colour bring as well as the legislative framework within which employment practices
are framed. We know how merchandising and marketing are even more critical in this market, how presenting the best selling item, may not be by placing it in the most
prominent part of the store. We assist in designing a promotional calendar around the trends from the territories’ cultural blooms. We know the ‘seasons’, we know what is
acceptable, what is becoming acceptable and what is definitely not.
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23 THE OPPORTUNITY LANDSCAPE
THE OPPORTUNITY LANDSCAPE The Rise of the African Consumer Report by McKinsey’s Africa Consumer Insights Centre (Nov 2012) shows that: • •
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African Consumers demand quality products and are brand conscious 60% state that ‘international brands are more fashionable than local brands (rises to 74% in Morocco) 58% of shoppers use in-store information to gather information on clothing
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Private consumption is higher than in India or Russia with Apparel expected to account for 45% of the $410 billion growth (2012-2020) More than half Africa’s inhabitants are under 20 years old 53% of those with an income are aged between 16 and 34
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81% of North Africans use positive product recommendations from friends and family
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25 WHY CHOOSE HUDSON?
Why Choose Hudson?
The future for Hudson
• North African penetration • Linguistic and cultural affinities • Based in Malta • Satellite offices in North Africa • In market on the ground support • Extensive experience in the region • Understand brands and the importance of doing it right
Our objectives for 2013 and beyond are aggressive. Hudson is looking to expand the number of stores and brands in existing countries and extend to new territories using economies of scale and our experience as well as fresh business models to reach outlying and virgin territories.
Awards and Accolades Over the years, we have gained more than respect from our partners Nike - Just Do It 2010 Nike – Distributor of the year 2011 New Look – Best International Launch – 2011 New Look – Distributor of the Year 2012 Nominated for HSBC European Business Awards 2011
Hudson Offers International franchise growth in North Africa Project management Retail management Brand management Location search Staff recruitment, training and retention Legislative and procedure infrastructure Merchandising and marketing Full back office operations Inventory control and logistics Performance analysis
We believe the time is right to invest in the region. The market is opening up to global influences and foreign trade and there’s a growing middle class with aspirations to be fulfilled. There’s an influx of foreign labour and foreign direct investment. There’s more local employment and therefore disposal income. Coupled with the expanding social and leisure opportunities these new markets are evolving faster than at any other time in history. This opportunity is one you should take, with Hudson.
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27 KING OF THE URBAN JUNGLE
KING OF THE URBAN JUNGLE 1993. Urban Jungle hits the streets with its first multi-brand concept store in Malta, bringing Nike, Converse and more to a fashion-hungry Maltese public. Fast-forward a decade and Urban Jungle has over 31 stores in Malta and Italy and we have an aggressive roll out plan in new and existing countries and regions. You can’t win if you don’t compete and sometimes you’ve got to lose to understand the game better. Joining the European Union in 2004 was a wakeup call for Urban Jungle with increased local competition. However thanks to a tenacious belief
in our dream, coupled with a fortunate meeting with a veteran Nike fanatic, Gianluca Salute, we were able to turn threat into opportunity deciding to go across borders with our concept. In 2011 Gianluca joined our project by buying in to the Italian
operations and he immediately set about redefining our vision for Italy, elevating the Urban Jungle franchise as a premium sneaker destination. Today Urban Jungle is a successful home-grown brand and concept that has made the leap to mainland Europe
and Africa. It’s an important feather in our cap and a testament to our belief in the power of Hudson. We’re going to make Urban Jungle the premium destination for sneaker lovers in Africa, Europe and beyond.
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Hudson House Triq Giovanni Felice Mriehel BKR3000 Malta T: +356 21472790 E: info@hudson.com.mt W: hudson.com.mt