A letter from the president

Dear fellow traders and professionals,

I hope the first half of this year has been good to you and that you’re ready for the winter trading season. While retail sales across the country are steady, we’re starting to see the impacts of the increased cost of living and inflation on retail spending. Data from April by Mastercard SpendingPulse showed that Australian retail sales were up 2.6 per cent year on year. The grocery category (up 8.5 per cent) and restaurants (up 8 per cent) led the growth, however spending declined in other categories including jewellery, home furnishings, and apparel.

We’re operating in a different climate compared to 2022, where low interest rates meant spending was higher, so it’s important for us all to think about ways we can attract customers to our stores. That might be offering incentives, running sales, or holding promotions on key retail dates where we know people still spend money.

In this newsletter you’ll find information about our planned promotions for the year. In the coming months we’ll have our winter food campaign, Camberwell Culinary Awards. The awards were popular last year.

Customers vote for their favourite eateries in the precinct and to participate they need to spend money at food businesses. This not only increases sales, it encourages people to discover our great food and dining offering and visit the precinct more often. We’ll also promote winter fashion and homewares, and contribute to school holiday entertainment in Camberwell Place. Our ongoing marketing includes regular trader profiles, SEO articles so people can find us when searching for specific shops and services online, keeping our website up to date to include new businesses and trader events, staying active on social media, and producing The Camberwell Citizen newspaper.

Make sure you check the Trader Portal at camberwellshopping.com.au to find details about government updates and business support resources. Also send your offers and promotions to our manager Kerry Daly so we can share them: info@camberwellca.com.au

Regards,

Henk Kelly-Kobes President, Camberwell Centre Association