The offers for Myer are now in. The Coles Myer board is reported to have met
last weekend to consider
the bids, with South African group Edgars
firming as favourite
to acquire the business. Yesterday, Crikey
reported an unsubstantiated rumour about David Jones putting in an over the top
bid, while today The
Age and The
Australian have the Myer family consortium leading the pack, with current MD
Dawn Robertson keeping her job and taking equity.

There are also rumours about who is
involved with the bids, including this
story about Warren Flick and Solomon Lew. The reports are all about the
bidders and the likely victor. However,
CML might not sell Myer at all.

Whether sold or not, Myer will continue to face big issues. If they are
not fixed, Myer will struggle along, with the odd glimmer of hope to
excite us. As recruiters we meet quite a few disaffected Myer people
which means we have a perception of a damaged workplace culture – I wrote about this previously in
Crikey. It is hard to see how a
continuation of the current management culture will produce the outcomes needed
to turn Myer around.

We
are told that we will know who the new owners are in a fortnight. However, the ultimate fate and long-term
viability of the Myer business will not be known for quite some time.