“The whole legal system is completely f---ed in Australia.”
Harvey, 85, co-founded the retail chain in 1982 with Ian Norman, and has held the position of executive chairman since 1987. Harvey’s son, Michael, sits on the board, but does not have ambitions to take on any more senior roles in the business.
Husband and wife duo: Harvey Norman chief executive Katie Page and executive chairman Gerry Harvey.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
His wife, Katie Page, is the company’s chief executive. Harvey said her energy levels were “quite extraordinary” and she “doesn’t intend to resign any time soon”.
“If [I] drop dead tomorrow, Kate becomes the chairman, I guess, and the CEO,” Harvey said.
Does he intend to keep the two roles separate? “That’ll be her decision,” he said. “I won’t be here.”
All resolutions were carried at the annual general meeting on Thursday, including the company’s remuneration report, which 81.8 per cent of shareholders had voted against last year. The $6.2 billion company’s shares were up by 2.8 per cent in late afternoon trading.
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Harvey Norman’s aggregate sales revenue rose by 1.7 per cent between the beginning of July and the end of October, and comparable sales lifted 1.4 per cent. Apart from Australia, the retailer operates stores in New Zealand, Slovenia, Croatia, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Malaysia.
Despite cost-of-living pressures, Harvey said sales were “not that bad”. But among higher costs of doing business, including wages, electricity was the “biggest problem”.
Christmas and Boxing Day sales are expected to be quite good, if last year’s numbers are anything to go by, and robo-vacuums, AI-powered computers and security cameras were selling in “huge numbers”.
“They’re products that were not hot a couple of years ago, [but] that are very, very hot at the moment,” Harvey said.
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