Aussie online retailer Catch.com.au is closing, with April 30 set to be it’s last day of operation as owners Westfarmers look to cut their losses and re-deploy the warehouse facilities across other brands.

It’s a sad day for Aussie innovation, with the original concept of catch launching almost 20 years ago as a daily email newsletter with a cracking good deal.

That grew to an online store offering everything from gadgets to dishwashing liquid.

I visited the Catch Warehouse in Melbourne over 6 years ago, and it was an impressive place with some of the very latest in automated warehouse and distribution technology.

A little while after that the business was purchased by retail giant Westfarmers for $230 million dollars, but in recent years they’ve lost more than that amount trying to keep the business running.

Westfarmers MD Rob Scott says “There has been a significant increase in competitive intensity in the Australian e-commerce sector, which has affected Catch’s financial performance and growth prospects.” – basically, Catch can’t compete with Amazon.

Amazon has found huge success in Australia with an enormous range of products across a vast fulfillment network offering fast delivery and great prices. Very, Very hard to compete with.

Add to that Temu and a bunch of other options, Catch was just not able to keep up.

The Catch facilities will become part of the Kmart Brand, another part of the Westfarmers group, allowing to benefit from better online fulfillment and grow their online business.

25 financial year.