Much more waiting in store as independents take on Big Two in major expansion

INDEPENDENT grocers Hill Street and Salamanca Fresh will expand with six new stores this year.

For Sun Tas. Dennis Behrakis managing director and daughter Soula Behrakis retail operations manager pictured at the Kingston store. The Behrakis family are opening more Salamanca Fresh stores. Picture Nikki Davis-Jones

PREMIUM independent grocers Hill Street and Salamanca Fresh will expand their empires with six new stores in the state’s South this year.

Salamanca Fresh will take over three Hobart stores and plans to open a new outlet at Huonville by the end of August.

Hill Street will expand its six stores to eight, with new outlets at Dodges Ferry and Snug.

The Behrakis Group, owners of Salamanca Fresh, will begin rebadging former Foodstore outlets at Lenah Valley, Bellerive and Sandy Bay this week.

The four new stores will add to the business’s presence already at Salamanca Place, South Hobart and Kingston.

“We are experiencing exceptional consumer demand and growth in our business and we recognise the need to make sure we have a strong presence in growing areas in the South,” managing director Dennis Behrakis told the Sunday Tasmanian.

Hill Street has recently expanded from three stores at West Hobart, New Town and Lauderdale, adding new shops at South Hobart, Blackmans Bay and Latrobe.

Also this month it moved and expanded its original West Hobart shop in to a much larger purpose-designed grocery and homewares store on the corner of Hill and Arthur streets.

Co-owner Nick Nikitaras said the Dodges Ferry IGA would be gradually rebadged and vacant premises at Snug converted on a long-term lease by next year.

“It really needs a certain number of stores to be able to compete in terms of price, but also to be able to start developing more meaningful relationships with ­direct suppliers within Tasmania,” Mr Nikitaras said.

“You need a certain volume to be able to sustain and grow the business.”

The Behrakis Group said all current staff at Foodstore outlets would be kept on. Hill Street said it would employ 30-35 people at each of its new stores.

Both businesses will focus on Tasmanian produce as they throw down the gauntlet to major chains Coles and Woolworths.

“Customers have certainly become far more discerning in how and where they shop,” Mr Behrakis said. “Shopping locally is the preference of the majority of our customers.”

Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association president Wayne Johnston said the local focus would be a boost for growers.

“If they’re concentrating on Tasmanian produce then of course that’s better for the agricultural producers,” he said.

The moves come as cut-price German supermarket chain Aldi said it was unlikely to move into the Tasmanian market despite its expansion into Western Australia and South Australia.

“We have no immediate plans to enter the Tasmanian market,” a spokeswoman said.