F&P shrugs off closure

Whiteware manufacturer Fisher & Paykel Appliances says the closure of the Hill and Stewart chain will not have a material impact on its business.

Hill and Stewart has been an F&P dealer since it opened in 1951.

This week its Australian owner, JB Hi-Fi, announced it was closing the remaining four stores.

F&P Appliances chief executive Stuart Broadhurst said the stores had been "a shrinking part" of the company's retail base.

"I think there's bigger issues than just Hill and Stewart. It has been very tight for a lot of retailers and we are regularly reviewing what our distribution channels are in New Zealand."

He said the January/February period would be the toughest.

To date F&P had had the luxury of choosing which retailers it went with.

"We have some key retailers that we deal with everywhere else in the world other than New Zealand that would love to have us back on their floors."