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17/06/2026

Bunnings' Strategy Day for 2026 was relatively subdued and largely limited to announcements of new category expansions. These included a new range of exclusive trade power tools from Einhell and a full entry into whitegoods appliances within 18 months. Bunnings' trade loyalty program, PowerPass, is also set to expand. To read more of HardwareNews' analysis, go to the link:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-24-1781738664291-001

15/06/2026

A Mitre 10 store owner in regional Queensland is fighting to stop Wesfarmers from opening a new Bunnings warehouse directly next door to his own store. David Woodman is attempting to use the Competition and Consumer Act to prevent this expansion in Jimboomba — classified now as an “outer suburb” of Brisbane, some 50km to the south of Queensland’s state capital.
HardwareNews goes into why Jimboomba is and whether Bunnings is behaving in a monopolistic manner. To read more, go to the link:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-24-1781486928593-001

02/06/2026

As of 1 July 2026, Wesfarmers' Industrial and Safety division, consisting of Workwear Group and Blackwoods, will become part of Bunnings Group. While this is a consolidation that would seem to make sense, it might also be an indication of Wesfarmers managing director Rob Scott's strategic plans for the conglomerate as a whole. To read the full story, go to HardwareNews:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-22-1780429676395-001

About the image: NNT is a part of Workwear Group, providing professional apparel. Featured here are outfits celebrating the upcoming NAIDOC week in July 2026.

20/05/2026

HardwareNews e-newsletter #164 has the following latest stories plus more:

Bunnings stores
The development application for a Bunnings store in Dalyellup, an outer northern suburb within the Shire of Capel in WA, will be situated on the Bussell Highway. It includes a bulky goods showroom, indoor and outdoor timber trade supplies, a nursery, and a cafe. Bunnings is exploring growth opportunities in the Pacific and launching an online store in Fiji.

Wesfarmers MD
Appearing at the Macquarie Australia Conference on 5 May 2026, Rob Scott discussed Bunnings strategy, and the strong role for AI in Wesfarmers' future.

NZ update
A new Mitre 10 trade and distribution centre is set to be built in the Tauriko Business Estate in Tauranga. Mitre 10 said it was preparing to increase prices, while Wesfarmers-owned Bunnings NZ has already hiked delivery charges in response to cost increases driven by the Iran war. Bunnings NZ will add another 300 products in its auto range across 40 of its stores.

Positec Group
Private investment firm Bain Capital has announced its investment in Positec Group, a maker of cordless power tools and advanced outdoor power equipment. The investment will support Positec’s next phase of international growth, product innovation, and expansion into high-growth categories.

Modular apartments
Wesfarmers will invest an initial $100 million in a facility that joint venture company Built Living will operate to manufacture modular and precast apartment components, with the capacity to produce more than 2000 apartments a year.

To read the e-newsletter, go to the link:
https://hardwarenews.au/flash/flash164.html

18/05/2026

A resident of Illinois (USA) has filed a class action complaint alleging that Ace Hardware Corporation has conspired to raise prices, reduce consumer choice, and divide territory in local markets, all in violation of US antitrust law. Sean Twomey brought the proposed class action on behalf of more than an estimated five million people who have bought goods from an Ace member store or affiliated store since 2022. The full story is on HardwareNews:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-20-1779130673219-001

30/04/2026

A Mitre 10 retail property in Benalla, regional Victoria, has been put up for sale through CBRE and GormanKelly. Located at 45 Sydney Road, Benalla (VIC), the property includes a 4,023sqm building on a 9,000sqm freehold site with frontage to Sydney Road, Benalla's main street where 9,900 vehicles travel daily. A retail shopping complex in Tasmania featuring Wells Mitre 10 has been put up for auction. Read more at at HardwareNews:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-17-1777587685031-001

27/04/2026

At the centre of Junee, a small country town in southern NSW, is Broadway Builders Supplies, that was owned by 90-year-old Margaret Pickles and her husband, 95-year-old Peter. After 59 years, the husband-and-wife team have decided to retire together after selling the business to Junee District Co-operative. The Co-op will close the store temporarily as it begins an operational reset behind the scenes. Read the full story at HardwareNews:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-17-1777304698835-001

19/04/2026

RYOBI has launched a mini-campaign TVC entitled "Come Equipped". It suggests RYOBI tools offer "battery-powered confidence" in a push to convert more tentative DIYers to larger projects. That contrasts with Bosch's efforts through its Dremel brand to promote "DIY differently" (perhaps a riff on Apple's "Think Different", but with German attention to grammar). Should power tool makers pursue legacy markets for growth, or help build future markets? To read the full article, go to the HardwareNews here:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-15-1776579778596-001

13/04/2026

The Home Depot is moving to get ahead of the weather rather than allowing it to be an external force driving sales up or down. It has partnered with The Weather Company to use hyperlocal, predictive weather intelligence to anticipate how conditions will affect demand and adjust marketing and messaging accordingly. It is putting predictive weather data to work to drive sales. To read the e-newsletter, go to HardwareNews:
https://hardwarenews.au/articleID/2026-15-1776038938315-001

08/04/2026

The latest HardwareNews e-newsletter #163 has the following additional stories plus more:

The new Bunnings store in Sale, part of the Gippsland region of Victoria, opened in early March. Plus developments in Glynde (SA), Ulladulla (NSW) and Port Kennedy (WA).

Bunnings’ latest partnership with Uber Eats will see more than 30,000 products from Bunnings available to order via Uber Eats.

Mitre 10 will be available on the DoorDash app for the first time, after it struck a new delivery deal with the online platform.

Bunnings has created an AI shopping agent “Buddy” that suggests products for complex home improvement projects, can generate a shopping list from a photo of a handwritten note, and connect customers with local tradies when a job is too big to handle alone.

Bunnings customers will have access to 500 additional automotive products rolling out throughout March and April, which builds on the 700 already available.

A new Bunnings Warehouse is mooted for a location in New Plymouth, a city on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. The hardware retailer plans to trial facial recognition technology in two of its 51 New Zealand stores from April 2026.

To read the e-newsletter, go to the link:
https://hardwarenews.au/flash/flash163.html

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