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Supermarkets

Yesterday

Supermarkets aren’t price-gouging, but try telling that to politicians

The pricing and profits at Coles and Woolworths are set to become a political football again on the eve of the 2025 federal election campaign.

Coles will pay an interim dividend of 37 cents per share.

Coles sales growth beats Woolworths, dividend rises

The retail giant also gained from industrial action at its rival in December, which resulted in empty shelves and customers defecting.

This Month

Woolworths chief executive Amanda Bardwell faced a difficult reception on the company’s investor call.

Woolworths unleashes $400m in cost cuts to convince market it can grow

Chief executive Amanda Bardwell faces a market increasingly concerned about the supermarket’s trajectory as profits fall.

ACCC chief Gina Cass-Gottlieb says this year’s enforcement priorities will extend to essential services such as telcos, electricity and gas.

Cass-Gottlieb fires warning shot at big telco, energy players

The competition watchdog will keep a sharp eye on the retail sector, but also other essential services such as telecommunications and energy.

A Woolworths Metro store in Sydney. The company is hoping to boost sales after a difficult year.

Woolworths restructures to supercharge lacklustre supermarket growth

The company’s chief executive Amanda Bardwell has elevated a long-time executive to oversee a combined supermarkets and home-brand products division.

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The Coles distribution centre in Truganina, in Melbourne’s west. The company has been working to cut down on the items available on its shelves.

Coles calls in Bain as it slashes the number of products on shelves

Australia’s second-largest supermarket chain quietly wants to reduce its range by at least 10 per cent – a move which should lead to higher profits.

January

Corporate heavyweights such as Qantas and Coles cop a lot of heat for reporting healthy profits.

Four charts reveal surprising views on Aussie businesses

Voters hate Coles and Woolworths? Think again. Amid a debate on the role of business in society, a new poll unearths some unexpected views on business.

The FTC said PepsiCo’s practices included making promotional payments to Walmart but not to large grocery chains or independent convenience stores.

PepsiCo accused of ‘rigging’ the soft-drink market

The US Federal Trade Commission sued the beverage maker, alleging illegal price discrimination by giving unfair price advantages to one retailer.

December 2024

Amanda Bardwell is the chief executive of Woolworths. The company faces regulatory action in Australia and New Zealand.

Woolworths NZ faces criminal charges for allegedly misleading shoppers

The Commerce Commission was not satisfied that “specials really are special”, leading to legal action against the supermarket and its rival Pak’nSave.

Striking workers outside the Woolworths distribution centre in Dandenong South last week.

Hit to Woolworths sales from strike grows to $140m, expected to rise

The supermarket giant agreed to a pay deal with the union on Saturday, ending industrial action. But it will take weeks to restock stores and warehouses.

Leah Weckert, Coles chief executive,
has been named one AFR Business People of the Year.

Weckert stamps her mark on Coles amid tumultuous year for supermarkets

Leah Weckert, one of the Business People of the Year for 2024, has fared well amid a barrage of criticism from politicians over grocery prices.

Amazon has a number of large distribution centres and hopes to be able to do same-day delivery in every major city by 2026.

Amazon is quietly turning into a major rival for Coles and Woolworths

Goldman Sachs estimates it is now the second-largest online retailer in Australia, but sales are still a fraction of the big supermarkets. Will that change?

End RBA scapegoating and come up with policy solutions

Readers’ letters on the Reserve Bank pile-on; supermarket “discounts”; a lost opportunity to protect the environment; support for the social media age ban; and rooftop solar.

Woolworth workers on a picket line outside the company’s distribution centre in Dandenong South on Monday.

Woolworths strike bill tops $50m as disruption spreads to Dan Murphy’s

The nation’s largest supermarket operator has applied for an urgent tribunal order to keep unions from blocking access to distribution sites in Victoria and NSW.

The Oreo was one of the products that the ACCC said had “illusory” discounts.

Supermarket giants use the $5 Oreo to argue their discounts are real

The ACCC has accused Woolworths and Coles of misleading shoppers. The retailers say the regulator doesn’t understand how pricing works.

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Shortages have been reported at Woolworths stores in Victoria, NSW and the ACT.

Woolworths shelves empty across Melbourne as union blocks deliveries

The scenes are reminiscent of the panic shopping and supply chain problems during the COVID-19 years.

Woolworths workers form a picket line outside the Melbourne South Regional Distribution Centre in Dandenong South.

‘Santa’s on strike’: Woolies warehouse staff pack it in

Hundreds of picketing workers fighting Woolworths for better pay and conditions have delayed a warehouse reopening, leaving supermarket shelves bare. How the day unfolded.

November 2024

Meet the skincare company with 460pc growth

Identifying a niche is easy. Filling it – at scale – is the challenge, as these successful founders discovered.

RBA on the right track

Readers’ letters on the Reserve Bank’s inflation strategy; Alexander Downer’s criticism of Labor over the ICC arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu; the ACCC inquiry into the supermarkets; the Victorian government under Premier Jacinta Allan.

Coles CEO Leah Weckert testified at the ACCC supermarket hearing on Thursday.

Coles says focusing only on low prices sent customers away

Appearing at a competition inquiry, chief executive Leah Weckert says experience has shown shoppers want more than just cheap products.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/supermarkets-62f