Australian Rural & Regional News found out more from Narrabri Shire Mayor, Darrell Tiemens and Narrabri Shire General Manager, Eloise Chaplain. See the interview further below.

Narrabri Shire Council, Media Release, 28 May 2025

Narrabri launches cheeky new campaign calling for major retailers to close the regional retail gap.

Narrabri Shire Council has launched a bold new campaign with a humorous twist to spotlight a very real problem – despite being one of Australia’s top cotton-producing regions, residents of Narrabri Shire can’t even buy basic affordable cotton essentials like bras, socks or jocks in their own town.

In a new promotional video titled #BringBackSocksAndJocks, the Council presents a tongue-in-cheek scenario where locals are forced to take drastic steps in making their own clothes from the ample raw cotton available in the region.

But the message is serious: Narrabri is calling for a major retailer to set up shop in the town.

Narrabri Shire Mayor Darrell Tiemens shared that the campaign is about more than socks and jocks, it’s also about closing the retail gap between regional and metro areas.

“It’s time retailers recognised the growing need in regions like ours. Narrabri Shire produces the cotton that clothes the country, yet our families are driving hours just to buy socks and undies. We’re not asking for luxury – we’re asking for basics,” Mayor Tiemens said.

The lack of a large-format clothing retailer in Narrabri has left many residents without access to affordable, quality essentials. Parents face hours of travel and expense just to clothe their children, while older people, many of whom are not confident online, are left without practical means to shop for basic necessities.

Beyond attracting more retailers to Narrabri, the Council hopes the campaign will spark a larger national conversation about access and equity.

The campaign asks why regional and rural Australians, who help drive billions in export and industry value, should be left behind when it comes to something as basic as buying clothes in their own communities.

“Narrabri grows the nation’s fibre, quite literally. So, the idea that we can’t even buy socks and jocks in town? It’s laughable,” Mayor Tiemens added.

“We’ve had a bit of fun highlighting the issue, but the message is serious: it’s time for a major retailer to come back and support us.”

Narrabri Shire, home to nearly 13,000 people, generates an annual economic output of almost $6 billion and supports over 6,900 jobs across key industries including cotton, grain, wool, beef, coal mining and gas.

The region contributes approximately 11.6% of the national cotton production – a crop valued at nearly $4.1 billion nationwide.

“As an economically strong and resilient community, we are more than contributing to the nation’s bottom line,” Narrabri Shire General Manager Eloise Chaplain said.

“We have a stable workforce, a growing population, and a 20-year rezoning strategy to deliver 2,100 new homes and a vibrant new CBD centre. This is the ideal environment for a major retailer ready to expand.”

With the #BringBackSocksAndJocks campaign, Narrabri Shire Council is urging major retailers to see the opportunity and meet the demand in regional communities that help power the national economy.

Questions from Australian Rural & Regional News

Australian Rural & Regional News asked some further questions of Narrabri Shire Mayor, Darrell Tiemens and Narrabri Shire General Manager, Eloise Chaplain.

ARR.News: It’s a great idea and campaign. When did the council have this idea and how long has this campaign been in the making?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: A retail attraction campaign was identified as a priority in Council’s Economic Development Strategy in 2023.

The #bringbacksocksandjocks campaign itself has been in the making for just over seven months, with consultation and planning undertaken by staff before delivering the campaign.

Furthermore, Council’s community strategic planning consultation identified the need for diverse retail options as a key issue for the people of Narrabri Shire, second to transport infrastructure (roads).

While the retail attraction campaign has a humorous twist, it spotlights a very real problem.

Narrabri Shire is one of Australia1s top cotton-producing regions. This includes being home to the cotton capital of Australia, Wee Waa.

Despite this, residents of Narrabri Shire struggle to buy affordable clothing essentials like bras, socks or jocks.

While the campaign focuses on socks and jocks, more broadly, it’s about closing the retail gap between regional and metro areas.

Beyond attracting a clothing retailer to Narrabri, we hope this campaign will spark a larger national conversation about access and equity.

This includes asking why regional and rural Australians, who help drive billions in export and industry value, should be left behind when it comes to something as basic as buying clothes in their own communities.

We are fortunate in Narrabri Shire to be home to an amazing array of established retail businesses, many of which are locally owned, and who truly are at the heart of the community.

ARR.News: How long has it been since Narrabri had a clothing retailer? How long was that retailer in Narrabri?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: Narrabri is home to many amazing local boutique retailers; however, Target Country closed in 2021, leaving a large gap in the local retail market, which has since not been filled since. (The store operated as a Fossey’s until the Target Country rebrand in 1999.)

ARR.News: One of the first thoughts of a prospective new retailer might be to wonder why the previous retailer closed up. Are you able to say why the last clothes shop closed and, if it was because they couldn’t make it work, what is different now, or what could be done differently that you believe would make this a good and viable business in Narrabri?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: The closure of Target in 2021, coincided with the end of one of the worst droughts on record faced in Australia’s history in Narrabri. This was alongside COVID-19 pandemic which altered foot traffic within our town centre during this time.

We understand this decision by Target was not just squarely aimed at Narrabri, but also affected many Target Country stores across the nation, with a proportion unsuitable for a K-hub conversion at that time.

Since this time, Narrabri Shire’s economy has continued to grow. More recently we’ve observed an increase in population based on ABS data, and the announcement of the Narrabri Place Strategy.

Developed in partnership between the NSW Government and Council, the Narrabri Place Strategy sets out a 20-year vision to guide the growth and transformation of Narrabri.

The Narrabri Place Strategy identifies the need for up to 2,100 new homes for both current and future residents to support the growing industries in the region.

It also acknowledges that our community is critical to the supply of food and resources for Australia as well as Narrabri’s important role in the North West region of New South Wales and its strategic location between Brisbane and Melbourne.

With this predicted growth and available premises opportunities within the Narrabri CBD, now is the perfect time to invest in Narrabri Shire.

ARR.News: More generally, do you believe this gap in Narrabri is symptomatic of a broader decline in retail stores in regional towns?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: Absolutely – our retail and CBD landscapes across the globe have shifted further since the pandemic, along with the surge in online shopping.

Regional towns have certainly had their challenges, including main street strip malls. However, regional towns have so much to offer with many wonderful locally-owned small businesses trying to fill the needs for the whole community.

What we are seeing is an uplift in quality retailers in many areas and a drive to shop local and support local stores.

As we know, shopping locally not only supports our local businesses and industries, but also has a positive multiplier effect within communities. For example, when taking into account staff wages and profits coming back through town, every $1 spent locally becomes $6.

Further, regional and rural Australians, who help drive billions in export and industry value, should not be left behind when it comes to something as basic as buying clothes in their own communities.

It should also be noted that online shopping is not suitable for everybody, and certainly not all of the time. This is particularly the case for families, where it’s pretty hard just to fit out a family with different sizes – not to mention the hassle of trying to return something if it doesn’t fit.

ARR.News: Why do you believe Narrabri is ready for retail expansion and why now? What advantages are there for retail in Narrabri?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: The demand within our community for retail expansion is resolute and clear.

Our community, and more broadly the region we service, is absolutely fed up with having to go out of town for basics such as affordable clothing, socks, jocks and linen.

In recent months we’ve observed an increase in discretionary retail spending from residents and visitors, despite the cost-of-living crisis. This is an encouraging sign that those in Narrabri are looking to spend.

This is further supported by softening national inflation and recent interest rate cuts by the RBA, which is why we believe now is the best time to invest in Narrabri Shire.

ARR.News: Do you think regional retail will pick up naturally or do councils and communities need to take proactive action, as Narrabri is doing with this campaign?

Mayor Tiemens and GM Chaplain: We feel it is about listening to and acting upon the needs of the community. In our case, it is very clear there is support for a campaign to attract more retailers.

Further, this campaign builds on our Narrabri Region brand, which, like any major brand retailers, is hugely important for local government areas.

As previously mentioned, Narrabri is expected to grow, with an additional 2,100 homes required to support an expanding industrial base, aided by our links to key regional ports such as the Port of Newcastle.

Smart investors, particularly a large clothing retailer, would recognise there is a first mover advantage opportunity right here in Narrabri, and should get in on the ground level now before they miss out.