Myer has crossed the $4 billion sales threshold, but the milestone offers little comfort when it comes alongside a $276.5 million statutory loss and an increasingly fragile consumer outlook. It was the department store chain’s second-largest loss, surpassed only by its $486 million deficit in 2018.

The result captures a retailer caught between two realities. Myer is expanding its relevance through fashion, loyalty and digital investment, yet that transition is colliding with weak discretionary demand and a business still reliant on promotional activity.

Myer’s headline loss was largely the result of a $279.6 million accounting write down on the value of its goodwill, brands and stores. Without that charge and other significant items, the retailer made an underlying net profit after tax of $42.5 million. However, the result still points to weaker trading with underlying profit down 2.9 per cent as reported and 32.1 per cent when compared with a full 12 months of Apparel Brands in both years.

Total sales reached $4.09 billion, up 11.3 per cent on an actual basis following the addition of Apparel Brands. Yet the softer underlying profit shows this is not simply an accounting story. Myer has increased its scale, but it has yet to prove that the enlarged group can produce stronger margins and earnings.

Executive chair Olivia Wirth said the second half was shaped by a “volatile and significantly more challenging macroeconomic and retail environment”. A “material downturn in consumer sentiment” became particularly evident in June and July, she said, compounding already subdued sentiment and weak discretionary spending.

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