It’s Time… to stop Coles and Woolworths

I use woollies fuel because it’s the closest servo to my house, has lots of turnover, for some strange reason seems to be one of the cheapest in the region, and has premium diesel. Getting 4 cents per litre off is a nice warm, fuzzy feeling, but in reality saves me about 65 cents per week.

JC said :

dungfungus said :

JimCharles said :

justin heywood said :

JC said :

…..many blame Coles and Woolworths for the closure of smaller local supermarkets, when reality is the customers have voted with their feet. If the small guy was so good the customers would stay and they would stay in business.

Yes, customers have voted with their feet. But in my view the results of the Colesworth duopoly have been terrible, and it is the job of responsible governments to occasionally step in and limit the negative impacts of capitalism.

-The duopoly has hollowed out the main streets of many towns and suburbs around Australia. We now go to soulless malls, where small shop-owners must pass on huge rents to their customers. The huge rents subsidise Coles and Woolworths, who usually occupy the largest spaces in the mall while paying small rent. The duopoly is now so big a mall can’t function without a Colesworth, whose rent is subsidized by all the other shop owners and their customers.

-The duopoly has done much to promote industrialised agriculture in this country, with many negative effects. Their buying power is so huge, growers and suppliers unwilling or unable to become industrialised themselves are forced out by ever larger corporate agriculture.

-The duopoly is developing a bit of a history of dodgy treatment of their customers and suppliers. We have seen the fuel docket scandals, the ‘fresh baked in store’ lie, the ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetable lie and a few others as well. In the past, customers could choose to shop elsewhere if a shop displeased them. But now the duopoly is now so dominant that there is now little alternative to the majors. Small stores cannot hope to compete on price or convenience. And ‘that’s the way they like it’

Interestingly, there’s an unexpected British backlash against the convenience of the bigger supermarkets and you may have seen the Tesco scandal of overstating profits amid dropping customer numbers..uncharted territory for the behemoth who everyone else has copied.
It turns out after destroying high streets across the world, customers are now happy to return to local independents because they’ve finally realised the knock-on damage to local economies.
This is despite food prices rising fast and the ultra modern shopping experience over there…it’s miles ahead in convenience but people are beginning to reject it all the same, while the smaller (than Tesco) players are getting more custom because they’re sourcing locally and giving a better deal for local suppliers.

There is a place for supermarkets, but there is also a case of going too far.
I reject Coles and Woolies over here because they’re taking the piss, especially since they started closing checkouts and forcing you to take trolleys through the self-checkout that were designed for baskets only.
I’ve no problem with self service but they were designed for convenience at really busy supermarkets where you’re stuck behind a load of trolleys and only want to pay for a dozen eggs.
If these sharks are bastardising the design and making you stack your shopping on the floor because your trolley’s still half full of unscanned goods…it’s a trip hazard, you’re blocking the cramped space off, it’s unhygienic, it’s slower and there’s no convenience…so you may as well go and get served properly somewhere else.
I had a heated discussion with another customer (a moron girl holding about 3 items) in Coles Belco when she said “everybody else can manage it dude”, thus missing the point entirely.
If Coles group are blaming this practice on a lack of staff when they made 1.7 billion last year and took it straight offshore to avoid tax, they’re doing the local economy another disservice by not even pumping enough money back into the community in the form of staff wages to help sell the goods that they’ve already crushed suppliers for. A double whammy.

I’m now quite content to walk round the other shops buying a bit from everybody because it makes me feel good. These small business owners can now use a bit of my money to buy a meal in another local restaurant, take their car to get a service at a local mechanic, give their kids a bit more pocket money to spend in a local shop etc. Keep the money localised and keep it in Canberra…it might keep us in a job one day.

Aldi are expanding rapidly in the UK, planning to employ another 35,000 this year.
It won’t be too long before Aldi will dominate Europe and the UK with Costco and Walmart dividing up the rest of the world (Coles and Woolworths will sell out rather than close down).
This is a consequence of globalisation that wasn’t foreseen.

Walmart has been in the UK for ages, though they trade under the name ASDA which is the company they brought.

Fair comment – I should have said “the rest of the Western world…”
The UK will be a Islamic caliphate in a few years. I don’t think Mr Cohen and his Tesco business will be around then either.

watto23 said :

The 7-11 at Erindale is rarely cheaper than the Woolies near the college, yet it gets as many cars through as the Woolies one does, so why would they lower their price? they are making plenty on fuel here in Canberra.

People like convenience, and have probably worked out that the paltry 2 cents per litre saved (usually much less) only equates to a massive 80 cents in a small car. People are not going to bother trecking the extra 500 metres through back streets for 80 cents. Especially not for E10.

watto23 said :

Petrol is an interesting one in Canberra. The non Caltex/Woolies and Shell/Coles servos are free to set whatever price they want, but because they can make more money selling at the same price as those 2 they do that rather than try to get more customers in at a few cents a litre less. Basically Canberrans are less price sensitive to fuel than other cities. After all a majority of us will still drive cars with no passengers and pay $10-15 a day for parking, rather than say use a bus for much less, because its more inconvenient to us.

The 7-11 at Erindale is rarely cheaper than the Woolies near the college, yet it gets as many cars through as the Woolies one does, so why would they lower their price? they are making plenty on fuel here in Canberra.

Actually the Caltex/Woolworths and Shell/Coles servo’s can set what ever price they like too. As mentioned many times the supermarkets do not own the actual service stations, except Woolworths who own 10% of the sites that carry their brand. They also do not have any say in price, that is up to the oil companies.

The servo’s are for the most part franchised out, with one owner owning multiple sites, (multisite franchises saw many smaller servos shut and saw some of the smaller franchisees out of business about 15-20 years ago) it is then up to the franchisee to set the price. That price will depend upon whether the supply agreement charges a price for supplying fuel into the servos tanks, or if they are charged for volume sold. The difference if you pay for say 40,000l of fuel you margin will need to be based on the money you payed for that fuel, but if on volume sold you rate changes on a daily basis. So if prices drop your better off paying for volume rather than for supply.

Other servos are privately owned and they enter into branding and supply agreements, but again are free to set their own price.

dungfungus said :

JimCharles said :

justin heywood said :

JC said :

…..many blame Coles and Woolworths for the closure of smaller local supermarkets, when reality is the customers have voted with their feet. If the small guy was so good the customers would stay and they would stay in business.

Yes, customers have voted with their feet. But in my view the results of the Colesworth duopoly have been terrible, and it is the job of responsible governments to occasionally step in and limit the negative impacts of capitalism.

-The duopoly has hollowed out the main streets of many towns and suburbs around Australia. We now go to soulless malls, where small shop-owners must pass on huge rents to their customers. The huge rents subsidise Coles and Woolworths, who usually occupy the largest spaces in the mall while paying small rent. The duopoly is now so big a mall can’t function without a Colesworth, whose rent is subsidized by all the other shop owners and their customers.

-The duopoly has done much to promote industrialised agriculture in this country, with many negative effects. Their buying power is so huge, growers and suppliers unwilling or unable to become industrialised themselves are forced out by ever larger corporate agriculture.

-The duopoly is developing a bit of a history of dodgy treatment of their customers and suppliers. We have seen the fuel docket scandals, the ‘fresh baked in store’ lie, the ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetable lie and a few others as well. In the past, customers could choose to shop elsewhere if a shop displeased them. But now the duopoly is now so dominant that there is now little alternative to the majors. Small stores cannot hope to compete on price or convenience. And ‘that’s the way they like it’

Interestingly, there’s an unexpected British backlash against the convenience of the bigger supermarkets and you may have seen the Tesco scandal of overstating profits amid dropping customer numbers..uncharted territory for the behemoth who everyone else has copied.
It turns out after destroying high streets across the world, customers are now happy to return to local independents because they’ve finally realised the knock-on damage to local economies.
This is despite food prices rising fast and the ultra modern shopping experience over there…it’s miles ahead in convenience but people are beginning to reject it all the same, while the smaller (than Tesco) players are getting more custom because they’re sourcing locally and giving a better deal for local suppliers.

There is a place for supermarkets, but there is also a case of going too far.
I reject Coles and Woolies over here because they’re taking the piss, especially since they started closing checkouts and forcing you to take trolleys through the self-checkout that were designed for baskets only.
I’ve no problem with self service but they were designed for convenience at really busy supermarkets where you’re stuck behind a load of trolleys and only want to pay for a dozen eggs.
If these sharks are bastardising the design and making you stack your shopping on the floor because your trolley’s still half full of unscanned goods…it’s a trip hazard, you’re blocking the cramped space off, it’s unhygienic, it’s slower and there’s no convenience…so you may as well go and get served properly somewhere else.
I had a heated discussion with another customer (a moron girl holding about 3 items) in Coles Belco when she said “everybody else can manage it dude”, thus missing the point entirely.
If Coles group are blaming this practice on a lack of staff when they made 1.7 billion last year and took it straight offshore to avoid tax, they’re doing the local economy another disservice by not even pumping enough money back into the community in the form of staff wages to help sell the goods that they’ve already crushed suppliers for. A double whammy.

I’m now quite content to walk round the other shops buying a bit from everybody because it makes me feel good. These small business owners can now use a bit of my money to buy a meal in another local restaurant, take their car to get a service at a local mechanic, give their kids a bit more pocket money to spend in a local shop etc. Keep the money localised and keep it in Canberra…it might keep us in a job one day.

Aldi are expanding rapidly in the UK, planning to employ another 35,000 this year.
It won’t be too long before Aldi will dominate Europe and the UK with Costco and Walmart dividing up the rest of the world (Coles and Woolworths will sell out rather than close down).
This is a consequence of globalisation that wasn’t foreseen.

Walmart has been in the UK for ages, though they trade under the name ASDA which is the company they brought.

Petrol is an interesting one in Canberra. The non Caltex/Woolies and Shell/Coles servos are free to set whatever price they want, but because they can make more money selling at the same price as those 2 they do that rather than try to get more customers in at a few cents a litre less. Basically Canberrans are less price sensitive to fuel than other cities. After all a majority of us will still drive cars with no passengers and pay $10-15 a day for parking, rather than say use a bus for much less, because its more inconvenient to us.

The 7-11 at Erindale is rarely cheaper than the Woolies near the college, yet it gets as many cars through as the Woolies one does, so why would they lower their price? they are making plenty on fuel here in Canberra.

JimCharles said :

justin heywood said :

JC said :

…..many blame Coles and Woolworths for the closure of smaller local supermarkets, when reality is the customers have voted with their feet. If the small guy was so good the customers would stay and they would stay in business.

Yes, customers have voted with their feet. But in my view the results of the Colesworth duopoly have been terrible, and it is the job of responsible governments to occasionally step in and limit the negative impacts of capitalism.

-The duopoly has hollowed out the main streets of many towns and suburbs around Australia. We now go to soulless malls, where small shop-owners must pass on huge rents to their customers. The huge rents subsidise Coles and Woolworths, who usually occupy the largest spaces in the mall while paying small rent. The duopoly is now so big a mall can’t function without a Colesworth, whose rent is subsidized by all the other shop owners and their customers.

-The duopoly has done much to promote industrialised agriculture in this country, with many negative effects. Their buying power is so huge, growers and suppliers unwilling or unable to become industrialised themselves are forced out by ever larger corporate agriculture.

-The duopoly is developing a bit of a history of dodgy treatment of their customers and suppliers. We have seen the fuel docket scandals, the ‘fresh baked in store’ lie, the ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetable lie and a few others as well. In the past, customers could choose to shop elsewhere if a shop displeased them. But now the duopoly is now so dominant that there is now little alternative to the majors. Small stores cannot hope to compete on price or convenience. And ‘that’s the way they like it’

Interestingly, there’s an unexpected British backlash against the convenience of the bigger supermarkets and you may have seen the Tesco scandal of overstating profits amid dropping customer numbers..uncharted territory for the behemoth who everyone else has copied.
It turns out after destroying high streets across the world, customers are now happy to return to local independents because they’ve finally realised the knock-on damage to local economies.
This is despite food prices rising fast and the ultra modern shopping experience over there…it’s miles ahead in convenience but people are beginning to reject it all the same, while the smaller (than Tesco) players are getting more custom because they’re sourcing locally and giving a better deal for local suppliers.

There is a place for supermarkets, but there is also a case of going too far.
I reject Coles and Woolies over here because they’re taking the piss, especially since they started closing checkouts and forcing you to take trolleys through the self-checkout that were designed for baskets only.
I’ve no problem with self service but they were designed for convenience at really busy supermarkets where you’re stuck behind a load of trolleys and only want to pay for a dozen eggs.
If these sharks are bastardising the design and making you stack your shopping on the floor because your trolley’s still half full of unscanned goods…it’s a trip hazard, you’re blocking the cramped space off, it’s unhygienic, it’s slower and there’s no convenience…so you may as well go and get served properly somewhere else.
I had a heated discussion with another customer (a moron girl holding about 3 items) in Coles Belco when she said “everybody else can manage it dude”, thus missing the point entirely.
If Coles group are blaming this practice on a lack of staff when they made 1.7 billion last year and took it straight offshore to avoid tax, they’re doing the local economy another disservice by not even pumping enough money back into the community in the form of staff wages to help sell the goods that they’ve already crushed suppliers for. A double whammy.

I’m now quite content to walk round the other shops buying a bit from everybody because it makes me feel good. These small business owners can now use a bit of my money to buy a meal in another local restaurant, take their car to get a service at a local mechanic, give their kids a bit more pocket money to spend in a local shop etc. Keep the money localised and keep it in Canberra…it might keep us in a job one day.

Aldi are expanding rapidly in the UK, planning to employ another 35,000 this year.
It won’t be too long before Aldi will dominate Europe and the UK with Costco and Walmart dividing up the rest of the world (Coles and Woolworths will sell out rather than close down).
This is a consequence of globalisation that wasn’t foreseen.

justin heywood said :

JC said :

…..many blame Coles and Woolworths for the closure of smaller local supermarkets, when reality is the customers have voted with their feet. If the small guy was so good the customers would stay and they would stay in business.

Yes, customers have voted with their feet. But in my view the results of the Colesworth duopoly have been terrible, and it is the job of responsible governments to occasionally step in and limit the negative impacts of capitalism.

-The duopoly has hollowed out the main streets of many towns and suburbs around Australia. We now go to soulless malls, where small shop-owners must pass on huge rents to their customers. The huge rents subsidise Coles and Woolworths, who usually occupy the largest spaces in the mall while paying small rent. The duopoly is now so big a mall can’t function without a Colesworth, whose rent is subsidized by all the other shop owners and their customers.

-The duopoly has done much to promote industrialised agriculture in this country, with many negative effects. Their buying power is so huge, growers and suppliers unwilling or unable to become industrialised themselves are forced out by ever larger corporate agriculture.

-The duopoly is developing a bit of a history of dodgy treatment of their customers and suppliers. We have seen the fuel docket scandals, the ‘fresh baked in store’ lie, the ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetable lie and a few others as well. In the past, customers could choose to shop elsewhere if a shop displeased them. But now the duopoly is now so dominant that there is now little alternative to the majors. Small stores cannot hope to compete on price or convenience. And ‘that’s the way they like it’

Interestingly, there’s an unexpected British backlash against the convenience of the bigger supermarkets and you may have seen the Tesco scandal of overstating profits amid dropping customer numbers..uncharted territory for the behemoth who everyone else has copied.
It turns out after destroying high streets across the world, customers are now happy to return to local independents because they’ve finally realised the knock-on damage to local economies.
This is despite food prices rising fast and the ultra modern shopping experience over there…it’s miles ahead in convenience but people are beginning to reject it all the same, while the smaller (than Tesco) players are getting more custom because they’re sourcing locally and giving a better deal for local suppliers.

There is a place for supermarkets, but there is also a case of going too far.
I reject Coles and Woolies over here because they’re taking the piss, especially since they started closing checkouts and forcing you to take trolleys through the self-checkout that were designed for baskets only.
I’ve no problem with self service but they were designed for convenience at really busy supermarkets where you’re stuck behind a load of trolleys and only want to pay for a dozen eggs.
If these sharks are bastardising the design and making you stack your shopping on the floor because your trolley’s still half full of unscanned goods…it’s a trip hazard, you’re blocking the cramped space off, it’s unhygienic, it’s slower and there’s no convenience…so you may as well go and get served properly somewhere else.
I had a heated discussion with another customer (a moron girl holding about 3 items) in Coles Belco when she said “everybody else can manage it dude”, thus missing the point entirely.
If Coles group are blaming this practice on a lack of staff when they made 1.7 billion last year and took it straight offshore to avoid tax, they’re doing the local economy another disservice by not even pumping enough money back into the community in the form of staff wages to help sell the goods that they’ve already crushed suppliers for. A double whammy.

I’m now quite content to walk round the other shops buying a bit from everybody because it makes me feel good. These small business owners can now use a bit of my money to buy a meal in another local restaurant, take their car to get a service at a local mechanic, give their kids a bit more pocket money to spend in a local shop etc. Keep the money localised and keep it in Canberra…it might keep us in a job one day.

arescarti42 said :

rosscoact said :

Pork Hunt said :

People are saying WW in Dickson is overpriced. Are you saying different Woollies stores have a different price for the same good?

Yes, its called differential pricing

Exactly.

Take Woolies Jerrabomberra and Woolies Queanbeyan for instance, which are only a few km apart. Why on earth would the Jerrabomberra store, which has no immediate competition and a comparatively wealthy customer base, charge the same prices as the Queanbeyan store, which is in direct competition with Coles and Aldi and has a comparatively less wealthy customer base?

Sure, heavily advertised basics like milk, bread and mince are standard prices everywhere, but the prices on pretty much everything else are going to be highly variable from store to store.

And when one of the majors has a location to itself, they tend to carry less of their own brand (usually appreciably cheaper) products and seem to make less effort with the quality of the produce, availability of freshly baked bread etc. – so some competition seems to be better than none.

JC said :

…..many blame Coles and Woolworths for the closure of smaller local supermarkets, when reality is the customers have voted with their feet. If the small guy was so good the customers would stay and they would stay in business.

Yes, customers have voted with their feet. But in my view the results of the Colesworth duopoly have been terrible, and it is the job of responsible governments to occasionally step in and limit the negative impacts of capitalism.

-The duopoly has hollowed out the main streets of many towns and suburbs around Australia. We now go to soulless malls, where small shop-owners must pass on huge rents to their customers. The huge rents subsidise Coles and Woolworths, who usually occupy the largest spaces in the mall while paying small rent. The duopoly is now so big a mall can’t function without a Colesworth, whose rent is subsidized by all the other shop owners and their customers.

-The duopoly has done much to promote industrialised agriculture in this country, with many negative effects. Their buying power is so huge, growers and suppliers unwilling or unable to become industrialised themselves are forced out by ever larger corporate agriculture.

-The duopoly is developing a bit of a history of dodgy treatment of their customers and suppliers. We have seen the fuel docket scandals, the ‘fresh baked in store’ lie, the ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetable lie and a few others as well. In the past, customers could choose to shop elsewhere if a shop displeased them. But now the duopoly is now so dominant that there is now little alternative to the majors. Small stores cannot hope to compete on price or convenience. And ‘that’s the way they like it’