It didn’t take long for Carl Jackson and his brother Jamie to know they were on to something big when they launched members-only retailer Oz Sale in 2007.
In the opening episode of our fourth series of Game Changers, CEO Carl tells host Sarah Harris (Shark Tank/Studio 10) that they quickly had to ditch the practice of taking parcels by hand to their local post office in Sydney’s Northern Beaches.
Once Australian brands got behind a concept that was already a huge hit in Europe, sales took off – $2 million in that first year, $10 million in the second, and $20 million in the third, with rapid expansion soon after in New Zealand and Asia.
Today, Australia’s first members-only online shopping club sells 30,000 products each day to its 15 million devotees in Australia alone.
Carl tells Sarah that the key to Oz Sale’s incredible success has been offering unbeatable value (up to 70-80% discount) on big-name brands, for a limited time only (three days).
The business model attracts 200,000 savvy shoppers to sign up to the site each month, says Carl.
“So that level of newness, freshness and intrigue gives the consumer the appetite to just keep looking,” he adds.
“Ultimately, having the right brand attracts the right consumer, and then it’s about offering choice.
“There are over 300,000 products on the website all the time. But that journey of working with the big brands is absolutely crucial for us.”
Carl says there is a team of between 150-200 around the world whose sole job is to source top-line discounted products exclusive to Oz Sale members.
Now a raging success in eight countries, Carl feels there is still plenty of room for further growth in Australia, particularly in homewares, which account for 20% of sales at present.
“I think we can also extend our product range into other verticals which sit alongside our core platform,” he says.
Check out Ozsales.com.au, here.
Watch our other Game Changers episodes:
- Game Changers: The Aussie Tech CIO Smashing The Glass Ceiling
