Steve Lewis is getting plenty achieved in his role as General Manager of Merchandise for Supercheap Auto

Steve Lewis was born and raised in the United Kingdom and took quite the journey before coming to Australia while nurturing a long love affair with all things automotive.
“I am from the south coast of the UK, a little fishing village called Lymington which is known for nothing other than where the ferries go from to the Isle of Wight,” Steve said.
“I’ve always loved cars. I got my first car when I was 15, which was two years before I could drive. It was a 1975 Toyota Corolla, so nothing particularly exciting, but it fuelled my love of cars because I could work on it.
“It was the car that I passed my driving test in but then wrote it off about six weeks later.
“I also love Motorsport. I remember growing up and always watching Formula One on a Sunday lunchtime. It was the era of Nigel Mansell, Aryton Senna and Alain Prost, who were my boyhood heroes.”
Steve discovered what direction he wanted to take his career after a speed bump early on.
“I went off to university at 18, wanting to be a teacher and as part of that, I went to do four weeks of teaching practice in Stoke-on-Trent and that taught me one thing – that I didn’t want to be a teacher!” he grins.
“So, I struggled for a couple of years finding what I did want to do. I finally got a job in a retail shop and I really loved it. I did that for a year and then thought, I had actually better go and get a real job.
“My first proper job was an Assistant Store Manager in a convenience store in Milton Keynes.”
After settling on his path at 19, Steve got to work building a career.
“I quite quickly became a Store Manager, where I managed a couple of different stores and it took me from Milton Keynes to North London,” he explains.
“Once there, I was promoted to an Area Manager role, looking after fifteen 24-hour convenience stores, which I have to say is one of the toughest gigs in retail.
“The business was eventually purchased by Tesco, so I went from being quite a big fish in a small pond at a young age to a small fish in a very big pond. And to be honest, I didn’t like it, so I left.
“I had always enjoyed home improvement, so I decided to apply for a Store Manager role at a company called B&Q, which is like Bunnings.
“After a few years, I was asked to come out of stores and work on supply chain, project managing the roll out of SAP into the business.
“That role morphed into being involved in opening new stores and then to Commercial Manager for Ireland.
“Eventually I ended up back in the UK where my category management career started, looking after electrical, then power tools, and a big move to lead the kitchen category.
“That was my last role in the UK. From there I was asked to move to China to lead the merchandise team there, so I packed up with my wife and kids and moved to Shanghai in 2008.
“The company was sold to a Chinese business in 2014 and I was then asked to move to Moscow but after a very interesting initial visit, we quickly decided that was not a great idea.”
It was at this point that Steve and his family made the move Down Under.
“I had been approached two times previously to come to Australia to join Masters so I reached out to the head-hunter and I ended up at Tradelink as GM of Merchandise and Supply Chain,” Steve said.
“I arrived in Australia on the Friday and started work on the Monday. I had five years at Tradelink and joined Super Retail Group in 2019 – and that was the best thing that could possibly happen because I loved cars and loved the crossover between home improvement and the Supercheap Auto business.”
In his role with Supercheap Auto, Steve has established himself as a man of action.
“Building relationships and listening to customers are attributes I hold highly, but really my personal brand is about getting stuff done,” he said.
“Being able to deliver and doing what you say you’re going to do is a really important strength to have.
“For those looking to come into the automotive industry, I would say, work hard and listen to your customers – really listen to your customers. If you can understand what your customers want and find a way to give it to them better than somebody else, you will win and you will succeed. It is as simple as that.”
As General Manager of Merchandise, Steve’s customers are his supply partners.
“A key thing about working with a supplier is remembering they’re in business to make money,” he says.
“It is about constructing a relationship which drives growth and is profitable for both the supplier and the retailer. It is finding and creating that win-win relationship.
“We are fortunate to have strong relationships with our Trade Partners, which allow us to evolve our range quickly to meet the needs of workshops and automotive professionals, all at competitive pricing.”
Supercheap Auto was founded in 1972 in Brisbane by Reg and Hazel Rowe.
“I was fortunate enough to meet Reg not long after I joined. I had the privilege of walking some stores with him in my early days,” Steve said.
“He is an incredibly sharp retailer with a very simple philosophy of: it starts with a great product, put a great price on it, have a good display and it will sell. And they built the business on that principle.
A recent pivotal step for Supercheap Auto has been its repositioning with a new slogan (Make it Super) and logo.
“I think rebranding a business is one of the hardest things to do when the brand is really, really successful,” Steve reflects.
“Everybody cares passionately about the brand and it means something to your customers. We actually considered changing the name but there was just too much equity in the Supercheap Auto brand.
“So, we ended up with a much smaller change to the logo than we set out at the beginning but when we landed on it, we knew it was right.
“Make it Super is really part of our platform for growth and it was such a versatile idea, because we can make a car super, we can make Christmas super; we can make just about anything super, plus we can also talk to our team around how they make the customer experience super.”
“From a trade perspective, Supercheap Auto Trade has been part of the business since 2007 and is a key growth area.
“We started by serving smaller independent workshops and mobile mechanics, and now we support a broader range across Australia and New Zealand.
“Today, our core range includes oils and fluids, filters, consumables, wipers and bulbs, tools, and batteries featuring major brands including Penrite, Castrol, Century, and Ryco.
“Looking ahead, it is about strengthening that foundation while selectively expanding into high demand maintenance categories. And we’re building for a future where Trade customers see us as a significant partner, not just an occasional shop.
“We’ve invested in digital infrastructure, trade specific pricing, improved service models and built stronger supplier partnerships to ensure we’re a reliable source for the everyday products workshops need.”

Supercheap Auto Trade has taken great strides over its time and has plenty of strengths which have helped to make it the success it has grown into today.
“Recognising that we didn’t need to copy the traditional model has certainly been a key driver of our success. Instead, we leaned into our strengths: a national store network, strong supplier partnerships, and a digital platform designed around speed, convenience and timesaving features for busy workshops,” Steve said.
“Everyday value, national availability, and convenience are our competitive advantages – mechanics know they can walk into store, order online, or call our Trade Hotline to purchase or get advice, depending on what works best for their business. That accessibility, combined with trusted brands and sharper pricing, is a real differentiator.”
Looking ahead, Steve says Supercheap Auto Trade has a key focus in mind.
“Our goal for Supercheap Auto Trade isn’t to be the biggest, it’s to be the most useful. That means making Trade smarter, faster and easier for the workshops that rely on us,” he said.
“Expect to see a stronger product range, seamless ordering process, and marketing that adds real value for our Trade customers.”
As the brand pursues this goal, it will do so while supporting the actions of the Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA), of which it is a long-time member.
“I have been involved with the AAAA since I joined Supercheap Auto and in 2020 I was lucky enough to be on the National Board for a year through COVID,” Steve explains.
“I’ve seen the organisation from the inside and I’ve also seen the fantastic work that the AAAA does representing the industry as a whole with areas like government relations and achieving big milestones such as getting the Right To Repair legislation over the line.
“Continuing to lobby for a level and fair playing field for the independent workshops and technicians is something that Supercheap Auto and I are fully supportive of.”
Looking back on his strong and far-reaching career thus far, we asked Steve what is one decision that he looks back on and thinks, ‘gee, I really got that right!”
“To marry my wife! And if I said anything else, she’d kill me!” he laughed.
“But in all seriousness – I have been fortunate in my career to move around, to China, to Australia, and to other different countries and none of it would have been possible without someone at home backing me and making it all work.”
When he isn’t hard at work, Steve likes to cycle and spend time with his family.
“Cycling keeps me fit and gives me a place to recharge the brain. I go out for an hour on the bike, get the heart rate up, clear the brain and it sets me up for the day.
“I’ve got two boys who are now 26 and 20. My 26-year-old got married almost two years ago and I am now a proud Grandad of a beautiful 10-month-old girl called Adeline. The younger one is in his third year of Engineering at UQ.”

To learn more about Supercheap Auto, visit www.supercheapauto.com.au