The welcome reopening of physical retail stores following the COVID-19 lockdown period will set us on a journey of recovery for our sector and the economy overall. We have created a step-by-step members guide to reopening your shop safely and compliantly.

As retail stores prepare to reopen, the ARA has developed a set of posters and signs which may be helpful to use within and outside your stores.

Download Customer Signage Posters

Stage 3 “Stay at Home” restrictions have been reinstated across metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire from 11:59 pm on Wednesday 8 July. See a summary of the restrictions below.

Summary of restrictions

Visit the ARA resources portal today, to access latest updates, financial support and resources

Resource Portal

ARA's leasing partner, Lease1, is offering a support package that includes important information, including worksheet templates, zoom Q&A sessions, and recovery webinars, to help you through the pandemic.

Leasing Support Program for Retailers

The ACCC has proposed to grant authorisation until 1 September 2021, subject to record keeping and reporting conditions. This draft determination follows the ACCC’s decision on 22 April 2020 to grant interim authorisation to the ARA while the ACCC considered the substantive application

The ABS Retail Trade Figures for May confirmed expectations of a spending spike following the easing of restrictions, but warned the figures did not indicate the return to normal trading patterns.

Fair Work Commission Minimum Wage Decision Recognises Economic Climate

The Fair Work Commission has today announced a modest wage increase of 1.75% deferred until 1 February 2021, aligning with the ARA’s recommendation.

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Industry News

News | Mon, 13 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Face masks recommended to help fight coronavirus in Victoria

Technology | Fri, 10 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Create positive CX with search

E-commerce | Wed, 08 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Australia Post delivers unprecedented $2.4 billion eCommerce boom during COVID-19

Retail Trends | Wed, 08 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Gen Z study reveals a new digital paradigm

News | Mon, 06 Jul 2020 22:30:00 GMT

The latest updates on COVID-19 State restrictions

News | Mon, 06 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

ATO Tax Office toolkit helps small businesses tick tax time off their to-do list

Technology | Fri, 03 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Amazon announcement highlights industry focus on post-COVID future

Retail Trends | Thu, 02 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

COVID online retail boom: what consumers want online

Training | Wed, 01 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Retail Ready Jobs Program: A different approach to hiring

Employment Relations | Tue, 30 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

COVID-19 business changes and TPAR

What we can do for you

Australia’s leading retail association ensuring your retail success.

Employment Relations Advice

Compliance issues? Questions about legal obligations? We have you covered. With 35 ER specialists, lawyers and solicitors on call, our experts offer unlimited telephone advice on a variety of relevant and helpful topics.

• Wage enquiries and Workplace agreements
• Occupational health and safety and WH&S
• Termination of employment & redundancy
• Retail tenancy & lease negotiation
• Discrimination and harassment

Tenancy Advice

ARA members have access to free initial advice from tenancy experts.

Do you have the knowledge and confidence to negotiate a retail lease? When negotiating retail rents with landlords, retailers often find themselves on an uneven playing field making it seem near impossible to negotiate effectively. Gain free advice from retail tenancy experts who have over 20 years of experience in retail leasing nationally.

Learning and Development

Learning and development opportunities for staff are available through ARA's RTO, the Retail Institute.

ARA Retail Institute is Australia’s leading retail training provider for both accredited and non-accredited learning programs. The ARA Retail Institute is a Government Registered Training Organisation (RTO) making it fully qualified to offer retail education programs to ARA members and broader retail industry.

Industry Events

Members can connect with like-minded industry leaders.

The ARA hosts and facilitates events that include briefings, webinars, seminars and executive lunches. Facilitation of industry committees such as L&D, WHS, Tenancy, HR and Australian Merchant Payments Forum promotes connection and engagement for senior retail partnerships.

Online Assistance

Members have access to a secure online portal which includes resources to aid your Human Resources team.

The ARA Employment Relations Management System is a secure online portal for confidential use by members. Templates, contracts, policies and checklists to support the Human Resources team.

Resources

ARA members have access to a library of industry-specific information, updates, guides and research.

The ARA Employment Relations Management System is a secure online portal for confidential use by members. Resources include;
HR templates, contracts, letters and workflows.
Members-only ER Alerts, speciality newsletters, and subscription to The Retailer magazine.
Practical guides for day-to-day retail operations
Exclusive webinars with our industry partners