5 November 2026 · Issue 158
David Jones Nears Administration
David Jones, the 188 year old department store chain, is on the brink of voluntary administration after talks with its biggest landlord, Westfield owner Scentre Group, broke down. Its board was due to meet overnight, with a decision on voluntary administration expected this morning. When we published, at about 7.10am Gold Coast time, no appointment had been announced. For shoppers, the practical message is simple: if you hold a David Jones gift card, store credit or a pending order, act on it now and keep every receipt.
Today’s brief leads on David Jones and what it means for gift cards and orders, then covers the big banks passing on this week’s rate rise and the September household spending figures. The retailer offers later in this issue are a separate, freshly verified selection from a disclosed partial scan.
David Jones set to appoint administrators after landlord talks fail
The Sydney Morning Herald’s Jessica Yun and Colin Kruger reported on Wednesday that the retailer’s private equity owners are on the precipice of appointing voluntary administrators as soon as Thursday morning, after talks with Scentre fell over when David Jones failed to pay rent for October. Scentre, which operates 17 shopping centres with a David Jones store, rejected a restructuring proposal from the retailer, and David Jones’ board then rejected a counter proposal, according to a source the Herald quoted. Scentre chief executive Elliott Rusanow said, “We have made a generous offer to Anchorage Capital Partners that would have facilitated the continuation of David Jones trading. That offer has disappointingly been rejected by them.” A David Jones spokesman confirmed the talks had stopped.
Nine’s Richard Wood reported that the board was set to meet overnight, with a decision expected by Thursday morning and thousands of jobs on the line. AAP’s Derek Rose reported that a McGrathNicol representative said on Wednesday afternoon that no appointments had been made, and that David Jones has 38 stores across Australia and New Zealand, 17 of them in Westfield centres.
The Australian Financial Review’s Sarah Thompson, Angira Bharadwaj, Carrie LaFrenz and Edmund Tadros reported that the company’s directors are expected to name insolvency firm McGrathNicol as voluntary administrator, while lender Hilco Capital is expected to appoint FTI Consulting as receivers. Ragtrader’s Christopher Kelly reported that Scentre told the ASX on Wednesday that its share of David Jones’ bank guarantees is about $30 million, equal to eight months of gross rent, and that the David Jones stores make up about 1.8% of its gross rent. Our Wednesday brief covered the missed reporting deadline and the extra lender funding that came before this week’s breakdown.
What it means if you shop at David Jones
Until an announcement is made, David Jones stores and its website are trading as normal. If administrators are appointed, they take control of the business and decide how gift cards, returns, deposits and outstanding orders are handled. SmartCompany’s David Adams reported that gift card holders would be unsecured creditors if the business collapsed, and that a new owner may not be obliged to honour cards issued by the previous owner. Retail Community chief executive Dean Salakas told SmartCompany, “We’ve seen in the past balances not being honoured. We’ve seen in the past new owners honouring those balances. So who knows what would happen.” He added, “I’d be spending it, if it were me.” The ABC’s Michael Atkin reported that Consumer Policy Research Centre chief executive Erin Turner said, “The best thing you can do is use any gift card you already hold as fast as possible.” She also advised avoiding new gift card purchases while the uncertainty lasts.
Our advice: check your gift card balance and spend the whole amount on something you would buy anyway, rather than waiting for a Black Friday price. Do not buy new David Jones gift cards for Christmas presents for now, and avoid paying a deposit on a large order. Pay with your own debit or credit card rather than a gift card, so any refund goes back to your card, and keep receipts and order confirmations in case you need to ask your bank about a chargeback later.
Big banks pass on the rate rise from 13 November
All four big banks have now passed on this week’s 0.25 point rate rise in full, effective Friday 13 November. CommBank said on Wednesday it will lift its variable home loan rates by 0.25 percentage points, taking its standard variable rate for owner occupiers to 9.30% before discounts, according to its rate announcement page. Westpac said in its newsroom it will raise variable home loan rates by 0.25 points for new and existing customers, and lift its Westpac Life total variable rate with bonus interest to 5.50%. NAB said it will lift its variable home loan rates by the same 0.25 points. ANZ announced the same rise and said it would add about $79 a month to the repayment on a $500,000 owner occupier loan; it is also lifting the bonus rate on its ANZ Plus Growth Saver to a total of 5.60%. Check your bank’s app for your new repayment and set your Black Friday and Christmas budget around what is left.
Household spending bounced 0.6% in September
The Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday that household spending rose 0.6% in September, after a 0.1% fall in August, and was 6.8% higher than a year earlier. Clothing and footwear spending rose just 0.1% for the month, and spending on furnishings and household equipment fell 0.2%, while discretionary spending overall rose 0.3%. In the ABS media release, head of business statistics Tom Lay said, “Household spending rose across essential and discretionary categories, with both Transport and Health rising by 1.5 per cent and Recreation and culture rising by 0.8 per cent.” The ABS said fuel spending rose 5.4% in September, reflecting higher global oil prices and the end of fuel excise relief on 3 August. Capital Brief’s Jemeema Hanson reported the rebound as spending rising across both essential and discretionary categories. In Queensland, spending rose 0.6% for the month. These figures are from before this week’s rate rise, so the October and November numbers will show more of the squeeze.
Today’s shopping note
When a retailer is in trouble, the safest money is the money you have not yet handed over. Spend store credit first, pay with your own card, and keep receipts. For everyone else, price your Black Friday list now, compare the delivery fee and returns policy along with the price, and read “up to” as a range claim. Confirm size, stock, delivery cost and exclusions before paying.
Our scan records unsuccessful checks as well as successful ones. A retailer page being retrieved is not enough to establish that every offer, item or delivery condition has been verified.
Primary reporting sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, Jessica Yun and Colin Kruger, 4 November 2026 (Elliott Rusanow quoted); The Australian Financial Review, Sarah Thompson, Angira Bharadwaj, Carrie LaFrenz and Edmund Tadros, 4 November 2026; Ragtrader, Christopher Kelly, 4 November 2026; SmartCompany, David Adams, 3 November 2026 (Dean Salakas quoted); Nine, Richard Wood, 4 November 2026; AAP, Derek Rose, 4 November 2026; ABC News, Michael Atkin, 4 November 2026 (Erin Turner quoted); CommBank, 4 November 2026; Westpac, 4 November 2026; NAB, 4 November 2026; ANZ, 4 November 2026; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Monthly Household Spending Indicator, September 2026, and media release (Tom Lay quoted); Capital Brief, Jemeema Hanson, 4 November 2026. Shopper advice and synthesis by Neil Fairhead for It’s On Sale. Hero photo: Nick D, Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (David Jones store entrances, Brisbane CBD, Queensland).
Top 5 Deals of the Day
Five stores. Five categories. The strongest discounts we verified on in stock items from our 4 November retailer scan, with every price and size rechecked this morning, 5 November, at 6.39am Gold Coast time.
We attempted all 179 retailer sale URLs in our 4 November pool and retrieved usable sale content from 144. The remaining pages could not be verified after fallback checks and are excluded. This is a disclosed partial scan, not a complete audit of every Australian retailer. Retrieval does not mean an offer was fully verified: this ranking includes only eligible stores where we confirmed a ticketed sale price against a was price on an item listed as available when checked. Generic sale descriptions, unresolved price evidence and same category duplicates are excluded. Each percentage is the verified example shown, not a discount on every item in store. Offers and stock can change.
Discount
Country RoadLeather AccessoriesSale edit. The Tassel Leather Charm is $19.95 from $79.95 (about 75% off), listed as available in Black and in Bordeaux, one size, when checked. A small leather gift to tie onto a bag, and an easy stocking filler to price now.75%OFF2
Ted’s CamerasCamera & AudioClearance. The Joby Wavo Lav clip on microphone with windscreen is $19.95 from $79.95 (about 75% off), listed as available when checked. Handy for clearer audio on phone videos, school concerts and family calls over the holidays.75%OFF3
BillabongSwimwearSurf sale. The Womens Summer High Drew Bikini Top in Bright Orchid is $19 from $69.99 (about 73% off), listed as available in sizes 10 to 18 when checked. Summer swimwear well under the usual price, ahead of the school holidays.73%OFF4
RYBeauty & HairClearance. Grow Gorgeous Hair Growth Serum Intense, 60ml, is $24.90 from $84 (about 70% off), listed as available when checked. A beauty pick to add to a Christmas list, priced at well under a third of its listed was price.70%OFF5
Orange SherbetWomen’s FashionFinal sale. The Erica Dress in Latte Stripe is $25 from $75.95 (about 67% off), listed as available in sizes 6 to 26 when checked. A wide size range for a summer day dress; final sale items usually cannot be returned for a change of mind, so check the size guide first.67%OFF% discounts shown are for the verified example in each card. Individual product savings vary.
One More Category Worth a Look
Champion: for activewear, the Champion C Fit Full Length Tight in Black is $28 from $79.99 (about 65% off), listed as available in sizes XS and S when checked. A good everyday training tight to price now and compare again on Black Friday.