Coles boss Leah Weckert believes cost of living pressures will see more cooking at home this Christmas
Cost of living pressures will see more people cook at home rather than eat out over the festive season, Coles says.
Coles boss Leah Weckert believes cost of living pressures will dominate purchasing decisions of many shoppers this Christmas as they cook at home more than last year when that festive season saw a surge in restaurant and cafe bookings due to just-ended Covid-19 restrictions.
And she confirmed that Coles flagship liquor chain Liquorland is winning market share from its main rival Dan Murphy’s as its owner Endeavour Group remains in the grip of a bitter and public boardroom civil war and shareholder revolt.
Unveiling the supermarket giant’s Christmas food, grocery and liquor campaign on Thursday, which will feature new products as well as a wider spread of price points to appeal to all household budgets, Ms Weckert said cost of living was definitely “top of mind” for many consumers.
She based her thoughts, and much of the Coles strategy for the Christmas and new year holidays, around a recent survey of Coles customers which brought up findings such as 20 per cent commenting they will be making more food at home this festive season.
“I think there are a few things that are a bit different this year. So, first of all I’d say that the cost of living we know is definitely top of mind for many customers and 90 per cent of them are telling us they’ve made choices and changes to minimise the cost of groceries.
“I don‘t think that’s going to be any different going into Christmas, so customers are going to be really focused on value.
“I think this year as well, we know at the moment, versus last year, about 50 per cent of people are doing more eating at home instead of going out and we‘ve just completed our Christmas survey of consumers and they actually told us for the Christmas season, about 20 per cent of them are expecting they’re going to be cooking more at home than last year.
“We know it’s been a difficult year for Aussies who are continuing to feel the pinch of cost-of-living pressures, which is why this year’s range caters to a number of different price points to help our customers celebrate Christmas, no matter their budget or festive plans.”
Ms Weckert, who took over as Coles chief executive in May, said customers would be “really smart about where they choose to economise and save money” but also set aside some money for splurging and treating themselves.
“Which is why we really have focused this year in the Christmas range that we have got, making sure that we‘ve got a real, wide range of options in every category for every budget on both foods and drinks.
“So making sure that you‘ve got something affordable that customers can buy at sort of the entry tier, but then a real treat item as well.”
The Coles Christmas range this year will see its supermarket and liquor store chain Liquorland introduce more than 142 new festive supermarket products, 150 new drinks and the first-ever collectable range designed by Michelin award-winning chef and ambassador Curtis Stone available exclusively at Coles. Some of the range, and encouraging that home cooking trend, includes a single smoked beechwood ham, a certified carbon-neutral triple-smoked beechwood ham and a prosciutto-wrapped chicken breast that is RSPCA approved.
Among its Christmas liquor offerings there will be a Canard-Duchêne NV Brut Champagne and Hidden Gem semillon sauvignon blanc that recently won a gold medal at the Riverina wine show and will sell for $4 a bottle.
Ms Weckert said food inflation had started to moderate in the fourth quarter, coming down to 5.8 per cent from 6.2 per cent in the third quarter, and that inflation had continued to moderate across the supermarket aisles.
“You’ve got areas like fresh produce and red meat in deflation, so you can get better prices now than you could last year … and as we come into Christmas we are very focused on how do we make sure we have got really great value across the whole range but also in those affordable tiers.”
Ms Weckert wouldn’t be drawn on the unfolding corporate fight at Endeavour whose retail liquor stores are the largest competitors to Liquorland and Vintage Cellars, but she did confirm the commentary from others involved in that boardroom upheaval that Dan Murphy’s was losing market share.
“It’s not really my place to comment on Endeavour. But what I can say is that we have had very strong sales results over the last eight quarters compared to our major competitor and we have been very focused on our strategy around our ‘Black and White’ renewals in Liquorland which is the biggest part of our (liquor) range, introducing much more local range that is very relevant to customers and then also providing great value through our price drop program.
“And we believe the combination of that strategy is supporting us to gain market share in liquor.”
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