Why the ARA and NRA say a merger will give retailers “the best of both worlds”

There was one key question following Wednesday’s announcement that the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and the National Retail Association (NRA) will finally merge: who will lead the amalgamated body representing a thriving $400 billion industry that employs over 1.3 million Australians?

Paul Zahra has led the ARA as CEO since April 2020, while the NRA is jointly led by Lindsay Carroll and Rob Godwin. 

However, a spokesperson for the ARA and NRA said the leader of the new body will be determined as part of the amalgamation process. They declined to say whether it will be one of the three current leaders but reiterated that a merger will provide the “best of both worlds” for the retail industry. 

The ARA and NRA have agreed that the merged entity will have a new name, being neither the Australian Retailers Association nor the National Retail Association.

This is the latest attempt at a merger following a failure to do the same in 2019. Both the ARA Council and the NRA Board have unanimously supported the amalgamation this time and signed the Heads of Agreement. 

The majority of members for both existing associations are small and medium-sized businesses, and their requirements are a core focus for both organisations. 

“This will continue to be the case in an amalgamated entity,” a spokesperson on behalf of both the ARA and NRA told Inside Retail.

Overcoming the hurdles

To ensure each entity’s principles were aligned for the amalgamation, Nicole Sheffield, ARA president, and Tim Schaafsma, NRA chair, have held a series of meetings over the past year.

“Retail is at the heart of the Australian economy and society and is the largest private sector employer. By amalgamating, we create an entity which is the advocate for the people, policies and ideas that advance the Australian retail sector,” Sheffield and Schaafsma wrote in a joint statement.

Both associations stated that “the feedback from members has been consistently supportive and positive.”

The merger will allow both parties to take advantage of stronger resources as a result of pooling them together.

Business as usual

For now, it’s business as usual, the merger will proceed gradually with increased collaboration, allowing for ample lead time around any changes made to operations.

“Our north star in this amalgamation is about adding value to members – so any changes we make will be in the member’s interests,” both the ARA and NRA said.

“Members have been calling for one voice for many years so we anticipate strong levels of support from members for this move. It’s the right thing to do.”

The process of an amalgamation of two registered organisations occurs under the Fair Work Act and will be subject to the approval of both the ARA and NRA members, as well as the Fair Work Commission.  

The indicative timeline is for the amalgamation to occur at least 12 months from now, based on similar amalgamations, and subject to approval.

For the next 12 months and until the amalgamation is completed, the ARA and NRA will work collaboratively to represent the interests of the Australian retail industry.

The purpose of the amalgamation is to add value to the current associations’ respective members and the broader retail sector. This will be achieved by a thorough analysis of each entity’s current member services to identify the strengths of each and ensure that the unified entity offers the “best of both worlds”.

“Achieving a unified voice, as well as unified resources, offers enormous benefits to the retail sector. It will deliver more powerful outcomes in terms of industry advocacy in particular,” the ARA and NRA said.

“It makes sense for us to collaborate, and that is a key driver for the amalgamation. An amalgamation between ARA and NRA will create a single voice for the retail industry.” 

The process of collaboration has already commenced, recent examples include the progress made on changes to the General Retail Industry Award (GRIA) with the Fair Work Commission.

The ARA and NRA have also collaborated on work surrounding retail crime and current retail trading hours.

The Retail Crime Symposium event on July 18 this year is an example of what members can expect to come from the pooled efforts.

“The need for a unified voice is more urgent than ever,” both Sheffield and Schaafsma agreed.

A new identity

The new entity will take on a new name, with its structure and representation to be developed over time as part of the Scheme of Amalgamation.

Currently, both organisations have a national footprint which will be maintained and expanded on as a merged entity. 

The location of the new head office is set to be determined at a later date. Currently, the NRA’s head office is in Brisbane, Queensland, and the ARA’s head office is in Melbourne, Victoria.

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