The ATO Is Quietly Killing Your Favourite Brands

<p>End of financial year is done and — despite the sale noise — the market actually went backwards in real terms, with Roy Morgan tipping EOFY growth of just 1.9%, under CPI. Mal&#39;s on the road in Sydney (yet another hotel), Alex is dodging a South Australian thunderstorm, and between the World Cup and NBA free agency it&#39;s basically Christmas in Mal&#39;s world. Plenty to get through.</p><p>The spine of this week: community is the last real moat — and the tax office is quietly pulling the rug out from under brands that forgot it. Hyrox is a billion-dollar cult with near-zero acquisition cost, while Stax and Geedup — two former Young Rich List darlings — have collapsed inside a fortnight, with the ATO increasingly the trigger. Plus a new boss at David Jones, a COO move at Adore Beauty, an Uber Eats campaign we loved, and a Made-in-Australia marketplace worth watching.</p><ul><li><strong>EOFY reality check</strong> — Roy Morgan tipped EOFY sales growth at just 1.9% (below CPI), and while some brands cleared stock brilliantly, the 80%-off-for-three-weeks crowd waved a red flag on margin.</li><li><strong>Discovery is the new battleground</strong> — timings were all over the place (Click Frenzy&#39;s comeback, early vs late-June sales), and getting onto a curated list like Two Broke Chicks&#39; EOFY round-up is earned-media gold.</li><li><strong>David Jones&#39; new CEO</strong> — Erica Berchtold (ex-The Iconic, ex-Mosaic) becomes DJ&#39;s first female CEO, replacing Scott Fyfe, with PE owner Anchorage Capital unlikely to be patient as pre-tax losses widen to $95.5m on sales of ~$2bn.</li><li><strong>Adore Beauty&#39;s new COO</strong> — Jasmine Russell joins from gifting brand Lvly as Adore leans further into its store rollout and omnichannel growth.</li><li><strong>Uber Eats &quot;bags&quot; the city</strong> — giant Uber Eats bags wrapped around rival brands&#39; billboards (GYG, Maccas, KFC, Hungry Jack&#39;s, Petbarn) — a masterclass in leaning on a distinctive brand asset rather than making Meta and Google do all the lifting.</li><li><strong>Made in Australia marketplace</strong> — Haroon Sheikh&#39;s new platform lists only verified Australian-made brands and competes on founder storytelling over price, with the real test being whether that goodwill converts at a viable cost of acquisition.</li><li><strong>Hyrox&#39;s billion-dollar cult</strong> — LVMH-backed L Catterton is reportedly in talks to take a major stake in Hyrox at a valuation as high as ~$1bn, buying not a sport but a cashed-up, referral-driven community with almost no paid acquisition.</li><li><strong>The AU brand reckoning</strong> — Stax entered receivership on 24 June across all four entities (12 stores down to two, permanently 50% off) and Geedup into liquidation, with Mal&#39;s &quot;gym test&quot; and a failure to renew the brand as the cautionary tale.</li><li><strong>The ATO is the silent assassin</strong> — insolvencies are up sharply YoY (retail and hospo leading), the ATO is now a leading creditor and far less willing to negotiate payment plans, so budget for tax like a household bill — buy the Hyundai, not the Lambo.</li><li><strong>See us at Online Retailer (22–23 July)</strong> — all-access passes are nearly gone, but free expo-floor passes are available (<a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.onlineretailer.com/en-gb/register.html?cat%3DRetailer%26ct%3DU2FsdGVkX18zizAT%252FPRxllJH9%252FV5p%2B%2BH4EYAQXzu%2BZFrIUBftFov4nFdHg365ESU%26utm_source%3DMalChia%26utm_medium%3DPartner%26utm_campaign%3DMarComms&source=gmail&ust=1782853352122000&sa=E" target="_blank">https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.onlineretailer.com/en-gb/register.html?cat%3DRetailer%26ct%3DU2FsdGVkX18zizAT%252FPRxllJH9%252FV5p%2B%2BH4EYAQXzu%2BZFrIUBftFov4nFdHg365ESU%26utm_source%3DMalChia%26utm_medium%3DPartner%26utm_campaign%3DMarComms&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1782853352122000&amp;sa=E)</a>; Mal&#39;s hosting the NORA podcast stage. Use code: TWIEVIP</li></ul>