Stax customers who placed orders around the time the activewear business collapsed will have to wait on the uncertain outcome of negotiations between receivers and the array of lenders and suppliers owed money.
Stax’ website ceased trading shortly after the Perth-founded company’s lender NAB appointed FTI Consulting receiver Joseph Hansell to seize control of the business and the site has been replaced by an FAQ page for customers.
“The ability to fulfil these orders depends on the cooperation of several parties within the supply chain, including clothing suppliers, freight forwarders, and the third-party logistics provider. Each of these parties is owed money by the STAX Group, which has complicated the fulfilment process,” receivers stated on the website.
Receivers Hansell and Asjadi Hone are “actively engaging with all relevant parties to determine whether supply can be unlocked and these orders fulfilled”.
Pre-sale stock purchased by customers was not physically held by Stax at the time as the stock was ordered from suppliers overseas and expected to be shipped to Australia.
FTI Consulting is in discussions with payment providers to assess whether refunds are possible for customers who placed orders on June 24 and 25. Those who want to return or exchange items that have already been delivered will not be able to, and gift cards will not be honoured. Two existing Stax stores in Sydney, Pitt Street and Liverpool in Sydney, have been shuttered.
The receivers have put the business up for sale, and interested parties will have a week to submit non-binding offers.
“We’re liaising with parties who have shown inbound interest and have reached out to industry players, with non-indicative binding offers due on the 13th of July,” Hansell told this masthead.
He declined to name the number of interested parties but confirmed competitors and rivals were among them. “There’s been strong interest shown to date.”
Hansell declined to comment on how many parties and the sums they were owed as these figures were still being calculated by the receivers.
Receivers are typically appointed by the company’s secured creditors, which in this instance include NAB and lender Bizcap, to recoup debts owed to them. Employees are usually considered unsecured creditors.
Stax was founded by South African designer Don Robertson in 2015 and operated it with his wife and business partner Matilda Robertson. The pair debuted on The Australian Financial Review’s Young Rich List in 2022 and were worth an estimated $70 million as of 2025. Stax was turning over $30 million and was valued at $52 million in 2022. The company has over 50 employees, according to its website before it was taken down.
Most known for its black tights and fleece, the Perth-founded label positioned itself as a luxury, size-inclusive brand, and had been seen on celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Hailey Bieber, Megan Fox, Lizzo and more.
Casual clothing and activewear sales boomed during pandemic lockdowns, but growing inflation and a succession of interest rate rises led to reduced consumer spending and higher rents. In 2024, Stax operated at least eight stores, but closed six in 2025.
Before Stax became an activewear brand, it was a supplement business called Muscle Stax that was ultimately seized by liquidators when the Perth gym to which Robertson was selling it collapsed. This led him to pivot to selling hoodies, which were so popular he rebranded Stax as an activewear label.
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Jessica Yun is a business reporter covering retail and food for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.
