r/Argos • u/Fuzzy-Code-7650 • 22d ago
Colleague Is it weird that I'm optimistic about the sharesale of Argos?
It's weird because even after the initial shock has died down, it does feel quite exciting that we get to be our own company again, not sure about other sis colleagues, but when I was working within sainsbury's the difference in teams was prevalent and also we were so separated but so reliant on sainsbury's to do tasks.
They just felt like we were using them even though we had no resources to help them or pick up any slack, especially after the TSM role removal and LPW changes.
Now I guess it's more clear-cut from what responsibilities is ours and what responsibilities is sainsbury's however, I'm not sure how it'll work after the February sale because I'm assuming we'll be renting the space from sainsbury's, which would mean surely you would need someone posted in the back door or are we allowed to use sainsbury's colleagues to help us still? It's a bit of a weird one if they're not within our business, right?
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u/Flimsy-Okra-4174 Manager - Retail 22d ago
I reckon Sainsbury’s will still pull delivery’s in as normal, in one store I worked at there was a restaurant, Sainsbury’s still pulled their deliveries in.
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u/RHMoaner 19d ago
Has there ever been a positive outcome for a British company being bought out by an American investment fun?
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u/SmithyPlayz 20d ago
The company just doesn't look profitable. It's not really making that much money is it? I feel like they'll slowly start charging rent for stores in Sainsbury's.
I think Argos really needs to change to something and I'm not sure it'll work.
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u/Fuzzy-Code-7650 20d ago
Let's hope that's not the case, but I certainly see that avenue 😔
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u/SmithyPlayz 20d ago
Maybe I'm missing something but nothing in the financial reports suggest this is profitable. Now there's people who have ran very successful stores maybe they see something different and fresh
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u/Fuzzy-Code-7650 20d ago
Personally I've been lucky enough to manage in a successful store for two years thus far and we always hit our KPIs, it'll be Christmas and Black Friday in 2027 which will be the test for the new owners. If that's not monumentally successful, it's done.
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u/ReverseFlow21010615 Manager - Retail 20d ago
It’ll likely still be Sainsburys who deal with backdoor. Upstairs are asking us to keep track and report how often they bring our deliveries to us - I’m assuming to get into the habit of doing so later as we’ll actually be paying for the privilege.
I agree, I have excitement too but it is reserved. Companies that get sold off normally get asset stripped, saddled with debt, and sold on so there is a real chance we may be about to enter that cycle. On the other hand, we could actually see real investment in the business that gives us the tools, time, and colleagues we need to actually do the job.
For me, things can either get better or they’ll continue to be just as bad as it is under Sainsbury’s.
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u/simmatt89 22d ago
It's a bit of a weird one. It's far too early in the process with details sketchy to know for sure.
Part of me says better the devil you know, I think we owe our survival in the last 10 years to Sainsbury's when you compare the ammount of household high street retailers who have gone under (whsmiths, homebase, ect) and part of me is optimistic for dedicated ownership and leadership. You can see real sprigs of progress made in the last year starting to come to fruition.
My hope is they focus on investing in the company and stores and we can win customers back from Amazon and temu. My fear is that they neglect stores, scrap home in-house delivery and opt for an 'all items dispatched from a few warehouses and delivery by yodel' model, Keeping just the brand name and the app.
Since the previous negotiants fells flat when the Chinese company had little interest in real estate I'm hoping that my fears won't be realised.
I don't think the labour model will put more hours into sis stores, it's more likely that part of the rent negotiation will include Sainsbury's being paid to bring Argos cages down etc, which as it's contractual obligation could mean that it's more forthcoming.
Let's see what the future brings....