Masters not coming to Port after Woolworths severs ties

A development application got the tick of approval last year to build a 13,415 square metre Masters Home Improvement Store, three bulky goods tenancies, car parking and associated infrastructure at 18 John Oxley Drive.

Woolworths' announcement that it would move to sell or close the loss-making hardware chain came as a blow for fans of Masters.

A Masters spokeswoman said Masters was committed to doing the right thing by its landlords and developers and they would be dealing with sites where construction was planned or underway on a case-by-case basis.

Leasing for the John Oxley Drive bulky goods development has started.

A spokesperson, in a previous discussion, confirmed there was significant interest in the site from other large format users which were not represented in the local government area.

Woolworths on Monday revealed it would purchase the third of Masters owned by US home improvement chain Lowe's Companies and then it intended to pursue an orderly prospective sale or wind-up of the business.

There are 63 Masters Home Improvement stores.

Woolworths chairman Gordon Cairns said the top priority was to do the right thing by shareholders, staff, suppliers and customers and they would act quickly and openly to minimise the impact of this decision.

Mr Cairns said a recent review of operating performance indicates it would take many years for Masters to become profitable.

"We have determined we cannot continue to sustain ongoing losses from this business," he said.

A public announcement from Woolworths on the Masters website said Woolworths would honour all gift certificates, product warranties, returns, and lay-bys and the completion of any contracted home improvement projects such as kitchens, bathrooms and floor coverings.

Any gift cards can already be used at other Woolworths group stores.