Message from the CEO: 8 August 2017

The retail sector is showing signs of recovery after a relatively flat year. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) trade...

The retail sector is showing signs of recovery after a relatively flat year. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) trade figures released Thursday have revealed a 0.3 per cent increase in June to $26.15 billion seasonally adjusted. Retail sales have now risen for three consecutive months, with June’s higher than the...

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Message from the CEO: 25 July 2017

One of the most important services that we provide members at the NRA is in relation to leasing and...

One of the most important services that we provide members at the NRA is in relation to leasing and tenancy issues. The Leasing Department, headed by property specialist Kyle Swain, is on hand to provide an array of leasing and property services from network planning and site sourcing, to negotiating...

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2017 Retail RiskFactor Report

How Retailers Contend with Today’s Prominent Challenges By BDO's Consumer Business Practice Leaders Alarmist headlines suggest the death of retail, but do...

How Retailers Contend with Today’s Prominent Challenges By BDO's Consumer Business Practice Leaders Alarmist headlines suggest the death of retail, but do retailers themselves share this perception? BDO analysed the 10-K filings of the 100 largest U.S. retailers for their 2017 Retail RiskFactor Report, which found that retailers recognise both narrow and...

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Is your loss prevention strategy simply spying on your staff?

by Brad Culbert, Retail Defender Last week, in the article “Modern Retail and the future of Loss Prevention” I talked about it being...

by Brad Culbert, Retail Defender Last week, in the article “Modern Retail and the future of Loss Prevention” I talked about it being no secret that the world of technology is changing faster than ever, and introduced the concept of a ‘behind the scenes’ technology that we know is uncovering great results for...

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Modern Retail and the future of Loss Prevention

by Brad Culbert, Retail Defender It’s no secret that the world of technology is changing faster than ever. When you picture...

by Brad Culbert, Retail Defender It’s no secret that the world of technology is changing faster than ever. When you picture the future of retailing, you might see holographic glasses replacing changing rooms, or integration with social media platforms to seek approval from friends. However, there’s a ‘behind the scenes’ technology that’s...

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Wannacry Ransomware – What you need to know

by Cyber-security expert, Leon Fouche, BDO On Friday, the world experienced the wrath of a well-coordinated ransomware attack, known as WannaCry....

by Cyber-security expert, Leon Fouche, BDO On Friday, the world experienced the wrath of a well-coordinated ransomware attack, known as WannaCry. A number of large companies have already been impacted, including Britain’s public health system, FedEx in the USA and Spanish telecom provider Telefonica. As of this morning, the Australian Cyber Security...

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The hacker’s shopping list

Despite growing awareness of cyber-crime and cyber-security, credit card fraud is on the rise in Australia with 19 per...

Despite growing awareness of cyber-crime and cyber-security, credit card fraud is on the rise in Australia with 19 per cent of Australians reporting they have experienced it, the third highest incidence in the world behind the US and Canada. According to the 2016 Norton Cyber Security Insights Report, 13 per...

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Building your cyber resilience

Leading advisory firm BDO is urging retailers to get back to basics to ensure they stay ahead of potential...

Leading advisory firm BDO is urging retailers to get back to basics to ensure they stay ahead of potential cyber security breaches, after releasing the results of its inaugural cyber security survey. The 2016 Cyber Security Survey, which was completed in conjunction with AusCERT, aims to help the market understand...

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Reports of ‘Cash back’ Scam at 7-Eleven Store

by Ben Desir, Workplace Advisor, NRA Legal Concerning reports of 7-Eleven employees being forced to pay back parts of their...

by Ben Desir, Workplace Advisor, NRA Legal Concerning reports of 7-Eleven employees being forced to pay back parts of their wages have come to light. Recent media reports suggest that franchisees of the embattled 7-Eleven brand, have continued to flout their employment law obligations. Workers have spoken to media outlets claiming...

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How’s your security?

If your retail business has little to no security policy in place, you run the risk of security breaches...

If your retail business has little to no security policy in place, you run the risk of security breaches which can cost time, money, consumer trust and can result in legal actions. What are the 4 main motivations for retailers to adopt security practices? Protection of operational systems (eg. system shutdown) A...

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Message from the CEO: 12 December 2016

Earlier in the week, GDP figures were released for the September quarter which showed a contraction of 0.5 per...

Earlier in the week, GDP figures were released for the September quarter which showed a contraction of 0.5 per cent for the Australian economy. While it certainly isn’t time to hit the panic buttons just yet, this should serve as a reminder to all of us in the retail industry...

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Businesses warned to be wary of counterfeit cash

UPDATE: In the last 24 hours, the National Retail Association has heard from members right across Australia, not just...

UPDATE: In the last 24 hours, the National Retail Association has heard from members right across Australia, not just Queensland, with sightings of counterfeit $50 and $100 notes in Victoria and New South Wales. We urge all retailers to inform your staff, read our tips below, and to inform...

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New portal for reporting retail crime

NSW: As the retail industry enters the lead-up to the busy Christmas period, an important issue confronting the industry...

NSW: As the retail industry enters the lead-up to the busy Christmas period, an important issue confronting the industry is that of retail crime and loss prevention. The NRA takes this matter very seriously, and over time has established a very close working relationship with the NSW Police Force to...

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Is your customer data safe?

Retailers that are engaging in online sales (e-commerce) or collecting customer data in registrations forms have unique security and...

Retailers that are engaging in online sales (e-commerce) or collecting customer data in registrations forms have unique security and privacy considerations. Retailers may be using proprietary solutions or using a 3rd party program to collect and process this information. If a retailer collects this information, they are responsible for its...

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Message from the CEO: 22 August 2016

There’s nothing more frustrating and soul-destroying for any business owner than to see the results of your hard work...

There’s nothing more frustrating and soul-destroying for any business owner than to see the results of your hard work disappear into the pockets of complete strangers. Yet we know that’s the daily reality for many small business owners in the retail space. That’s why your association is working actively with law...

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The next generation $5 banknote is coming

The Reserve Bank is preparing to release the next generation of Australian banknotes. This involves gradually transitioning all denominations...

The Reserve Bank is preparing to release the next generation of Australian banknotes. This involves gradually transitioning all denominations of banknotes to new designs, with upgraded security features, an innovative tactile function to assist the vision-impaired community and reduce counterfeiting. The first of these next generation banknotes is the new...

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