Masters Hawthorn East
Masters store located near the Toorak Road-Auburn Road intersection which is one of 18 stores in Victoria for the Woolworths-Lowes (USA) joint venture in hardware. Opened in April 2013 it was built on a long abandoned gasworks site adjoining the now busy Monash Freeway with the compact site meaning it was provided with underground car parking. Heavy losses against incumbent rival Bunnings in part due to an aggressive expansion (often next to Bunnings stores) and low sales have seen Woolworths abandon the category altogether and announce closure of the chain by early December 2016 with a liquidation sale starting August of the year. These shots were taken early in the closing down sale.
The stores (including several development sites) have been sold to Home Consortium who will reconfigure the sites to a combination of Spotlight, Anaconda, JB Hi Fi, The Good Guys and Woolworths supermarkets. Rival Bunnings will take over 15 of the 61 stores open. Liquidation is being carried out by the Great American Group with evidence seen in the large 'STORE CLOSING' and 'GOING OUT OF BUSINESS' signs more commonly seen in the closing of large stores in the United States.
Masters Hawthorn East
Masters store located near the Toorak Road-Auburn Road intersection which is one of 18 stores in Victoria for the Woolworths-Lowes (USA) joint venture in hardware. Opened in April 2013 it was built on a long abandoned gasworks site adjoining the now busy Monash Freeway with the compact site meaning it was provided with underground car parking. Heavy losses against incumbent rival Bunnings in part due to an aggressive expansion (often next to Bunnings stores) and low sales have seen Woolworths abandon the category altogether and announce closure of the chain by early December 2016 with a liquidation sale starting August of the year. These shots were taken early in the closing down sale.
The stores (including several development sites) have been sold to Home Consortium who will reconfigure the sites to a combination of Spotlight, Anaconda, JB Hi Fi, The Good Guys and Woolworths supermarkets. Rival Bunnings will take over 15 of the 61 stores open. Liquidation is being carried out by the Great American Group with evidence seen in the large 'STORE CLOSING' and 'GOING OUT OF BUSINESS' signs more commonly seen in the closing of large stores in the United States.