An Australian consultancy has been engaged to develop a big box liquor retailing chain set to be rolled out across major Chinese cities.

Retail Oasis, established just three months ago by Steve Kulmar, founder and for 28 years head of IdeaWorks, started work on the Chinese project in November.

Kulmar told Inside Retailing the Chinese operator already has one store in China, which will be completely redesigned before the new concept is rolled out across at east the top 10 Chinese cities.

The project will combine western approaches to big box liquor retailing with an offer suited to the Chinese market - and to the growing appreciation of and demand for wine there.

It's one of a raft of projects Kulmar's new venture has secured since he left Ideaworks on June 30 - a year after he sold his stake in the company. His restraint of trade lasted just one day.

"So I took the 1st of July off and then started on Retail Oasis," he said.

A team of six now work from Retail Oasis' head office atop a building in central Manly with views of Sydney Harbour and the surf of Manly Beach.

Other projects include developing a new in-store format for book chain Angus & Robinson that redefined the retailer's position without compromising the offer its recently-acquired sister brand, the Borders big box stores. Kulmar says the first stores converted were "trading beyond belief" in their first few weeks after opening.

Retail Oasis has also launched a new brand of power tools, Rockwell, for Positech. The brand is designed to offer Mitre 10 and independent hardware stores with an alternative to the Ryobi brand since it became exclusively distributed through Bunnings stores. With the catchline 'Do it Well, Rockwell' the brand launched on October 1.

Other founding clients include Beds R Us, Borders, Rodney Clarke (which has just opened a new format in Westfield Hornsby), Amber Tiles and Athletes Foot (owned by RCG of which Kulmar is a director).

Kulmar says Retail Oasis is not an advertising agency as such, rather a retail marketing specialist which helps retailers connect with consumers.

"I don't understand the back room of retail businesses, the logistics or the supply chain. But I sure as hell understand what goes on externally. My point of view is always about what consumers think."

Kulmar says while retail sales growth has been strong for such a long time - more than 10 years - retailers have been able to focus on operational issues and too many have ignored the consumer and consumer perceptions of their business.