Blog 18th Anniversary: The Duopoly of Australian Supermarkets

 The duopoly of supermarkets continues across Australia, as corporate muscles are flexed against suppliers, staff and customers in a relentless obsession of growth in profits, dominance and control. 

I support more of stand alone independent grocers and direct producers, they have more variety on their shelves.  As prices in Coles and Woolies have gone up, they cannot compete price wise with some independent grocers, especially ethnic ones like Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, etc. 

My strategy now is to be mindful of selected items of grocery to buy - and suppport small business in my locality as far as I can. A more focused approach helps to avoid wasting expenses on addictive food, zoom for more quality in edibles and exercise our minds and hearts in better choices with discretion. 

Fresh eggs are not bad at Aldi, they do not shelf them in fridges like Coles and Woolies. Fresh milk at Aldis is a good buy, but at the same time there can be a lot of distracting products at Aldi outlets. 

More distracting is the preponderance of products laden with sugar, salt, preservatives and fat at the main supermarkets.  Do walk the aisles and make up your own mind. 

If one resides in an Australian regional area, I understand there can be a lack of choice -  and one depends more on the duopoly. 

This is echoed in the lack of competition especially in the Australian sectors of domestic air travel, pharmacies and banking. 

Fresh produce markets are fascinating to me, but generally since Covid, prices have spiked at such stalls, even if quality is maintained. 

I have also dabbled in ordering online offers of groceries and white goods - some provide free  and next day delivery at the very latest.

The physical store model is increasingly under threat - the way some businesses are treating customers is viewed in disdain by more people I know. 

Need we visit a supermarket venue to get essential food?  We step in such places and we observe some using them for social chats.  We also note the rise in self managed check outs with narrow spaces.  Cameras are attached to monitor the movement of human beings.

Pyschological games are played with posters put up by the supermarket to induce us to buy, but which underestimate our level of intelligence. 

Do reflect on the huge numbers of real estate such supermarkets sit on, they can easily get into the commercial property game once they stop selling food. 

There has truly been this relentless drive to know what you and each family have bought in the past to shape millions of purchasing profiles.   The underlying rationale is that once you buy something, you will buy it again.   This model excludes the very possible human trait of not purchasing the same thing ever again - and the right to have a significant change in taste. 

The use of membership cards implies the giving of peanut reward points to customers. 

The duopoly puts its bets on greater convenience, habitual pattern of spending and lack of competition for the majority of the population to

regularly visit its outlets.  They are also experts in marketing, human behaviour and commercial practices.   

#yongkevthoughts

Costco Revisited

 Costco Australia - navigating between the aisles.

It is said the main revenue for Costco derives from the annual membership fees. The rest is just bonus income for this business model.

Costco shelves are chock a block with seeming captivations, but one has to often buy in bulk - and this best suits small business operators, large families and those with ample home storage space.

Not everything is a bargain at Costco, but they do sell an increasing variety of items from petrol for vehicles, coffins, optometrist services, white goods, health supplements, liquor and fresh bakery consumables. In USA, the range is even more, offering for example jewellery and tour programmes.

Their trolleys are bigger than their retail competitors.  One can be lulled into stacking so many items in the trolley, but checkout can be a hassle, and on getting out of the Costco door, customers have to show their receipts to inspectors who also make a visual audit of the items in your trolley.

Never go to Costco on a busy day.  There is no social distancing, no face masking and at times, observed possible lack of civility in the behaviour of the crowds.

Costco pricing does awaken at least one thing in me - our main stream supermarkets are charging us more than a bit as they make it a routine to go to them to buy.

There are only three Costco outlets in NSW, centred on huge population hubs in Greater Sydney.  This says a lot abour their emphasis on having a large viable market base before they establish any branches.

What I Miss When Grocery Shopping

Who decides what product to pull off the shelf at our grocery stores?

It can be disappointing to customers, but it looks like as big business grows even larger, there can be a disconnect between what makes a customer happy and the decisions made behind the scenes based on macro factors, artificial intelligent analysis and shareholder returns.

The live local and slow food movement has supply decisions based on a lot of customer interaction, but what we see from huge and impersonal corporate decisions makes me frustrated at how difficult it is to still have access to products I love.

The upside for me is spending less time and purchases at retail stores that are out of sync with what I like to buy. Even contacting directly with the makers of such products can be of no help, as some inform me that they only deal with wholesalers. The relentless push to drive big margins and ever higher returns can be devastating but that is how contemporary capitalism seems to thrive on.

So here is a reflection of what I have missed, since they are no longer produced or so hard to get these days. They may not all be healthy to consume, but there was a sentimental connection. I reluctantly say Adieu to:

1. Red labelled malt Milo beverage powder.

2. Kitchen rolls that have a better strength and texture.

3. Fresh milk without additives and fancy labelling.

4. Red Tractor Oats with Omega 3.

5. Fresh fruits and veg that are irregularly shaped and sized - and have more character and taste than robot like same sized versions.

6. Bread loaves without unnecessary supplements, preservatives and artificial taste.

7. Eggs that are naturally sized and which do not defy nature.

8. Corn chips that still have taste despite not having added sugar and salt.

9. Juices that are not overhyped with promises that cannot be kept.

10. Products with less or unnecessary plastic packaging.

#yongkevthoughts