Dick Smith stores' brand slam

Perceptions of electronics retail company Dick Smith have worsened since November 2015 with 83% of respondents now having heard something negative about them.

A group of the company's creditors put the firm into receivership on January 4, 2016.

Receivers immediately made those who had received Christmas gift vouchers from the retail chain unsecured creditors and would not honour them.

Comparing Dick Smith's performance across 23 factors since November, 2015, there have been significant negative changes in perceptions of quality, value, satisfaction with the store, whether respondents would work for the store, ease of finding what customers want, general overall impression and respondent recommendation.

Of particular concern is respondent recommendation, where 55% would now tell their friends to avoid Dick Smith, up from 26% in November 2015.

Results are from Horizon’s Brandtracker service measuring adults’ experiences with and perceptions of brands across 23 factors. The January 26- February 11, 2016, survey was of 1482 adults New Zealand-wide representing the adult population at the last census. At a 95% confidence level, the maximum margin of error is +/- 2.5%.

The Whiteware and IT Store Brandtracker measures the relative performance of Dick Smith, Farmers, The Good Guys, Harvey Norman, JB Hifi, Noel Leeming, PB Tech, 100%, Smith’s City and The Warehouse.

A top line summary of Dick Smith brand performance across 23 factors can be downloaded here.

Comparative brand performance tracking across all major retail sectors is available from Horizon.

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Contact:

Grant McInman, Manager, Horizon Research Limited

E-mail: gmcinman@horizonresearchco.nz