@UlladullaDave Fair point — Lew is pretty long term thinker. And I really don’t know what his attraction to Myer has been for all these years. That said, I think there are signs Lew might be more open to rationalising the structure than before. The apparel brands were recently combined with Myer, which feels like a step in that direction.

Even if he doesn’t move quickly, I tend to think that over time the market often catches up with the underlying value — a bit like what eventually happened with News Corp’s REA stake

 The apparel brands were recently combined with Myer, which feels like a step in that direction.

That felt like dumping all the underperforming assets into MYR rather than a sign he wants to sell off what's left. It was bizarre that MYR shareholders waved it through. Like you though, I am very confused as to why he keeps chasing MYR. Department stores peaked in the 1990s.

I wasn’t that tuned in at the time but I recall something about Myer’s value as a shopfront for his brands being the motivation. But that seems like a long bow to me.

Crunched a few high level numbers and I can’t get to a big enough margin of safety for a sum of the parts case to really stack up under modest assumptions. It probably relies on Smiggle reversing its current sales decline and strong ongoing growth from Peter Alexander, which I don’t fully understand — I’ve never quite grasped the appeal of expensive pyjamas. So as far as I see, it could just as easily prove to be a fad. So I’m moving on for now. Might be interested at a 30% lower price.

The 30% drop I was looking for appears to have come. Time to revisit.

@UlladullaDave and @PhilO I bought Myer due to Lew taking the controlling stake and amalgamating the brand. The rationale seems to be store space, HR and logistics savings but also growing the Myer Rewards business. I think they have the old Qantas Rewards boss in Myer now. Myer Rewards are now available in all those other brands' stand alone stores now. So far I am not being rewarded for my bet, the stock is well down and continuing downwards. Pretty sure the rate hike (and likely subsequent hikes) are going to do retail businesses no favours.