Delivering Today. Value Tomorrow

A CENTURY OF PROGRESS Delivering today. Value tomorrow. Wesfarmers | Annual Report 2014 WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 A CENTURY OF PROGRESS WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 2 A century of progress. In this our one hundredth year, we celebrate our strong commitment to performance that has seen our business consistently deliver value to our shareholders, employees, customers and the communities in which we operate. As we look towards the future we continue to focus on the core values that form the foundation of our success – integrity, openness, accountability, and boldness. Despite many changes over the past 100 years, it is our steadfast commitment to these values that ensures we provide a satisfactory return to shareholders; look after our employees and ensure they have a safe environment in which to work; provide excellent products and services to our customers; look after and care for the environment; and make a contribution to the communities in which we operate. WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 WESFARMERS ANNUAL REPORT 2014 1 A CENTURY OF PROGRESS Contents About Wesfarmers About this report From its origins in 1914 as a Western Australian farmers’ This annual report is a summary of Wesfarmers’ and its cooperative, Wesfarmers has grown into one of Australia’s largest subsidiary companies’ operations, activities and financial listed companies. With headquarters in Western Australia, its position as at 30 June 2014. In this report references to diverse business operations cover: supermarkets; department ‘Wesfarmers’, ‘the company’, ‘the Group’, ‘we’, ‘us’ and stores; home improvement and office supplies; coal production and ‘our’ refer to Wesfarmers Limited (ABN 28 008 984 049) export; chemicals, energy and fertilisers; and industrial and safety unless otherwise stated. products. Wesfarmers is one of Australia’s largest employers and References in this report to a ‘year’ are to the financial year has a shareholder base of approximately 500,000. ended 30 June 2014 unless otherwise stated. All dollar figures are expressed in Australian dollars (AUD) unless otherwise stated. Proud history, strong future Steeped in a foundation of distribution and retailing Wesfarmers is committed to reducing the environmental since its formation, today, Wesfarmers is one footprint associated with the production of the annual report of Australia’s leading retailers and diversified and printed copies are only posted to shareholders who industrial companies. have elected to receive a printed copy. This report is printed on environmentally responsible paper manufactured under ISO 14001 environmental standards. Our objective The primary objective of Wesfarmers is to provide a satisfactory return to our shareholders. WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 2 Chairman’s message 4 Board of directors 64 Managing Director’s report 8 Corporate governance statement 68 Leadership Team 12 Directors’ report 79 Operating and financial review 14 Remuneration report 84 Coles 28 Financial statements 103 Home Improvement and Office Supplies 32 Directors’ declaration 147 Kmart 38 Independent auditor’s report 148 Target 42 Annual statement of coal resources and reserves 149 Chemicals, Energy and Fertilisers 46 Shareholder information 152 Resources 50 Five-year financial history 153 Industrial and Safety 54 Investor information 154 Insurance 58 Corporate directory 155 Other activities 61 A CENTURY OF PROGRESS Our 2014 Sustainability Report will be Our commitment to Sustainability available online in November 2014 at Wesfarmers | Sustainability Overview 2014 sustainability.wesfarmers.com.au WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 WESFARMERS ANNUAL REPORT 2014 3 A CENTURY OF PROGRESS Chairman’s message In such a milestone year for the company it is very pleasing to have again delivered solid growth in revenue and earnings enabling us to meet our long-held objective of delivering a satisfactory return to shareholders. It gives me great pleasure to introduce Wesfarmers’ annual report for 2014, our centenary year and the thirtieth anniversary of our public listing in 1984. We achieved a net profit after tax of $2,689 million for the full year, an increase of 18.9 per cent over the previous year. Excluding non-trading items, net profit after tax increased 6.1 per cent and earnings per share (EPS) rose 6.8 per cent. The directors were able to declare a fully-franked final dividend of $1.05 per share at year’s end. That took the full-year dividend to $1.90 per share, up 5.6 per cent. A special ‘Centenary’ dividend of $0.10 per share, fully-franked, was also declared taking the total full-year dividend to $2.00. The divestments of the Insurance division and the 40 per cent interest in Air Liquide WA (ALWA) have meant that, in addition to the special ‘Centenary’ dividend, the directors have also been able to recommend further capital management through a distribution to shareholders of an additional $1.00 per share. This is subject to shareholder approval at the 2014 Annual General Meeting, and a ruling from the Australian Taxation Office. Should all conditions be met, shareholders are expected to receive their payments in December 2014. I would sincerely like to thank everyone in our teams for making this year’s result possible. Special thanks go to Anthony Gianotti and those in the Insurance division who continued to perform so well during the divestment period. It is a great testament to their professionalism. We are extremely pleased that Anthony has decided to remain within the Wesfarmers Group. This year’s result builds on a remarkable legacy. Since listing, Wesfarmers has delivered compound annual growth in total shareholder return (TSR) of 21 per cent, 89 per cent more than the rate of TSR growth achieved by the market as represented by the All Ordinaries Index. Over the past five years, Wesfarmers has delivered compound annual growth in TSR of 18 per cent, compared with TSR growth of the ASX 200 of 11 per cent. WorldReginfo - 0b28c54e-452e-499f-aaaa-5f8681972bd6 4 Building on our rich history Safety and sustainability Outlook From our beginnings as a farmers’ The founders of Wesfarmers were driven The Wesfarmers story is unrivalled in cooperative registered in Perth in June 1914 by the ambition for sustainable success. Australia. The company has demonstrated with a paid up capital of £2,050, we now In that sense, nothing has changed, incredible adaptability and resilience over the have a market capitalisation of $50 billion although the world and community century of its existence and has developed and more than 500,000 shareholders. expectations, of course, have. a very strong culture which, I believe, will continue to serve our shareholders well into We are now Australia’s biggest private sector In recent years, we have had a relentless the future. The company has prospered employer with more than 200,000 employees focus on making our workplaces safer. It is during periods of massive international in this country, and thousands more in New pleasing to report that this year we have seen upheaval, dramatic domestic policy shifts Zealand and Asia. improvement in our total recordable injury and rapid societal and technological change. frequency rate across all of our divisions. Wesfarmers has had a succession of great It’s all been possible because of the skills leaders who have developed, nurtured and Our drive to lessen our impact on the and attributes of our people. preserved a unique culture. I am humbled by environment also remains a key part of Under the outstanding leadership of Richard the thought that I am chairman of a company our decision-making. Our carbon emissions Goyder and his management team, I believe whose history has been fashioned by the intensity improved further in 2014 and we Wesfarmers is well-placed to meet the contribution of many tens of thousands of continue to focus on decreasing our waste inevitable challenges that will confront us in people over such a long period of time. to landfill. the years ahead. Wesfarmers exists for your I think of the metaphor ‘standing on the benefit and we thank you for your ongoing shoulders of giants’. The Board support of this great company. When I succeeded Trevor Eastwood, who I would like to thank my Board colleagues retired in 2008 after a long and distinguished for their hard work and support throughout career as executive, managing director the year. We had no changes to the Board and then chairman, I became just the tenth during the 2014 financial year. Their varied chairman of Wesfarmers in what is now 100 skills, experience and perspectives is years. Richard Goyder is only our seventh complemented by a truly collaborative and CEO. I cannot think of another Australian cooperative approach. I can faithfully report company with that sort of record. that the Board members are serving the It is a great Australian story, which merged shareholders well. Bob Every AO, Chairman with another great Australian story when we This year, two of our longest serving board acquired the Coles group in 2007. It was a members, Charles Macek and Colin Carter, controversial decision, the story of which is will retire. Charles joined the Board in 2001 now well told, but I would again like to thank and his long career in financial services, the people involved in that acquisition and all working at a senior executive level, meant the people who have since made it such a he brought considerable experience in remarkable success. evaluating and advising on investment It is a coincidence that Coles is also opportunities to the company. Colin joined celebrating its centenary this year and we the Board in 2002 and his extensive can all take pride in the fact that Coles is experience advising on corporate strategy once more a thriving, dynamic Australian and corporate governance in Australia and business delivering significant benefit overseas has been invaluable in a period of to Australian consumers and the wider great change for the company.

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