Company profile

The Reject Shop (Aust.) Pty Ltd

The Reject Shop

About Us

The Reject Shop began in 1981 as a "seconds" shop, specialising in a variety of cheaper goods and odds and ends, located in Toorak Road, South Yarra, Victoria.

The next official store was established in 1984 in Puckle Street, Moonee Ponds in a middle class high traffic suburban shopping strip. It was immediately successful and remains so today.

The formula for supplying what customers wanted at bargain prices proved to be the basis of a sustainable retailing format. The stock in the early days consisted of broken ranges, seconds and end of lines; however that ceased to become a part of the business as the company got bigger and could not be supplied with enough seconds.

The Reject Shop did not directly import stock up until 1989. Our buyers now travel to China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, England, Europe and America for merchandise.

In four years from 1989 over thirty new stores appeared in metropolitan Melbourne with a store in virtually every key area. New locations were established in country Victoria including Geelong, Albury, Bendigo and Ballarat. In 1992 first moves into other Australian states commenced with five shops in Sydney, New South Wales and three shops in Adelaide, South Australia.

In 1994 the Macquarie Bank invested in The Reject Shop which enabled the Company to position itself comfortably for new growth, new directions and financial security with a disciplined approach to the next phase of the company's development. Also in 1994 the company was named Grand Champion Victorian Business of the Year in the Age-Dun and Bradstreet Victorian Business Awards.

At the beginning of 2000, the Macquarie bank increased its share of the business and a new Management team was put in place to advance the company to the next stage of its development.

Our business has continued to undergo a period of outstanding growth. By the beginning of 2004 stores numbered 103 and were located in Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Queensland.

In June, 2004 the Company was floated on the Australian Stock Exchange to enable Macquarie Bank to realise its investment in The Reject Shop.

The Reject Shop is a professional retail organisation that is committed to the development of its people. The company offer structured retail career paths for employees through accredited traineeship programs. In particular, Certificate 2 in Retail Operations, Certificate 3 in Retail Supervision, Certificate 4 in Retail Management and School to Industry Traineeships.