RETAIL TRADE – AUSTRALIA

Distrust replaces trust for Coles and Woolworths – and it’s just the beginning

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-May-24

Amidst a massive cost of living crisis, calls for an inquiry into allegations of price gouging and heightened media coverage of profit announcements, trust for Australia’s supermarkets has been decimated. Coles has plummeted 221 places from its December 2023 ranking as Australia’s 5th most trusted brand to become the 9th most distrusted brand (on a 12-month rolling average to March 2024). Woolworths has in turn dropped 32 places from its December 2023 ranking as Australia’s 2nd most trusted brand to become the nation’s 34th most trusted brand in March. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says we have been tracking trust and distrust of brands in Australia for more than seven years, but we have never seen a reputational crash as dramatic as Coles and Woolworths. This is in direct contrast to the soaring reputational trust that they gained during the pandemic. Roy Morgan’s data reveals even more dramatic declines in the coming months; its best estimate is that it will take the two supermarket brands at least two years to recover from such a dramatic reputational crash, and only if they can develop and execute a data-driven recovery strategy that is built on much more than PR and spin.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW

Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards: Australia’s winning retailers announced

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-May-24

The annual Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards were awarded in April, and the 16 winners in the retail categories range from many popular and well-known Australian brands to multi-national US retail names. The 13 repeat winners were led by Myer as Department Store of the Year for a ninth straight year, Bunnings Warehouse as Hardware Store of the Year for a seventh year in a row, and Rebel as Sports Store of the Year for the ninth consecutive year. The new category of Online Retailer of the Year was awarded to technology giant Amazon, which won eight monthly awards to run away with the category for its first win. The other first-time winner was Big W, which won Discount Department Store of the Year with a perfect record of 12 straight monthly wins in 2023. Both Amazon and Big W had average customer satisfaction in excess of 90%.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, REBEL SPORT LIMITED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES

Coles to expand its private label offering

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 1-May-24

Coles Group has reported that its total sales rose by 3.4 per cent to $10.03bn in the March quarter. Its supermarket division’s sales were up 5.1 per cent to $9.07bn, with sales of private label grocery products rising by 8.8 per cent to $3.1bn. In contrast, its liquor store division’s sales fell by 1.9 per cent to $786m. Coles CEO Leah Weckert says cost-of-living pressures weighed on liquor sales during the quarter, but also help boost sales of ‘home brand’ grocery products. Weckert adds that Coles is responding to the latter trend by expanding its range of private label products, including the more premium Coles Finest range.

CORPORATES
COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL

More staff come forward in Super Retail legal case

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz, Ayesha de Kretser
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 30-Apr-24

Harmers Workplace Lawyers has confirmed that it is acting for four female employees at Super Retail Group who are seeking compensation over alleged governance breaches, including an undisclosed relationship between CEO Anthony Heraghty and its former head of HR, Jane Kelly. Harmers has stated that more staff have come forward to join the action after Super Retail Group disclosed the relationship in an announcement on Friday, with the company stating that it expected two employees to bring a claim for between $30 million and $50 million alleging governance failures, including the non-disclosure of the romance between Heraghty and Kelly.

CORPORATES
SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, HARMERS WORKPLACE LAWYERS

Saying it with flowers tops the $1 billion cash splash on Mum for 12 May

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Apr-24

Research from the Australian Retailers Association in collaboration with Roy Morgan shows that Australians are set to spend $995 million on Mother’s Day this year; this is up $70 million (or 7.5%) from 2023. Despite the increased spend, some 400,000 fewer people are set to buy Mother’s Day gifts this year, highlighting the impact of the cost-of-living crunch. The higher overall spend is due to a higher spend per person of $102 (up from $92 in 2023), reflecting inflationary driven price increases and indicating that those who are less affected by cost-of-living pressures are spending more. Flowers, alcohol, or an experience top the gifts for mothers and others. Continuing the trend in recent years, 19% of people who purchase a present will be gifting somebody other than their birth mother. This includes their partner, friend, mother-in-law, grandmother, sister or daughter. The ARA-Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey was conducted with an Australian-wide cross-section of 2,191 Australians aged 18+ from 3-5 April.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION

The Future of Retail: A Roy Morgan Business Address

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Apr-24

Roy Morgan’s Retail, Social and Consumer Trends Expert Laura Demasi presents a Roy Morgan Business Address on the consumer trends shaping Retail, as sales flatten amid the ongoing cost of living crunch. The Future of Retail Business Address explores how consumers are coping in this pressured environment: who is the hardest hit, how Australians are adjusting their spending, which cohorts still have spending power, and the surprise retailers winning in this environment. The Address also outlines Roy Morgan’s forecast for annual retail sales for 2024.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Australia’s major supermarkets accused of purchasing properties to turf out independent stores

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Original article by Jonathan Barrett
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 12-Apr-24

The Senate inquiry into supermarket prices has been told that grocery giants Coles and Woolworths engage in land-banking to prevent smaller rivals from opening a store near their supermarkets. Grant Ramage, the CEO of Metcash’s food division, said the duopoly is also prepared to pay inflated prices to buy out rivals in order to stifle competition, while they have been known to buy retail properties that are tenanted by independent supermarkets and subsequently not renew their lease. Aldi Australia’s CEO Anna McGrath has told the inquiry that rival supermarket chains often reduce their prices when the Germany-based company opens a new store near their existing outlets.

CORPORATES
METCASH LIMITED – ASX MTS, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD

Retail insolvencies rise as cost-of-living pressures slash consumer spending

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Original article by Kate Ainsworth, Emilia Terzon
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 10-Apr-24

Data from the Australian Securities & Investments Commission shows that 502 businesses in the retail sector have gone into administration so far in 2023-24, compared with just 193 during the same period in 2021-22. Factors such as the cost-of-living crisis and high mortgage interest rates are weighing on consumer spending, with smaller retailers in particular bearing the brunt. National Retail Association CEO Rob Godwin expects more businesses in the sector to collapse in the final months of the financial year. He says the federal government’s budget in May should provide financial assistance for retailers, particularly small and medium-sized businesses.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, NATIONAL RETAIL ASSOCIATION LIMITED

Supermarket hit could rock us all

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Original article by Jess Malcolm, Geoff Chambers, Lydia Lynch
The Australian – Page: 4 : 9-Apr-24

The Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry has expressed reservations about any push to make the food and grocery code of conduct mandatory rather than voluntary. ACCI CEO Andrew McKellar has responded to the release of Craig Emerson’s interim report on his review of the code of conduct by warning that excessive regulation could have "unintended consequences". Amongst other things, Emerson has recommended fining supermarkets up to 10 per cent of their turnover for breaches of the code. Meanwhile, Opposition leader Peter Dutton has described Emerson’s inquiry as a "Mickey Mouse review conducted by a Labor mate"; Emerson is a former federal Labor minister.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Lew unveils ambitous Premier overhaul

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 13 & 16 : 27-Mar-24

Premier Investments has posted a 2023-24 interim net profit of $177.2m, which is 1.7 per cent higher than previously. Sales rose by 2.9 per cent to $890m, while shareholders will receive a record half-year dividend of $0.63 per share. Meanwhile, chairman Solomon Lew has revealed plans to spin off the Smiggle stationery brand and the Peter Alexander sleepwear business into separately-listed companies in 2025. The proposed demerger of the two flagship plans follows a review of Premier Investments’ assets that was commissioned last year.

CORPORATES
PREMIER INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX PMV, SMIGGLE PTY LTD, PETER ALEXANDER SLEEPWEAR PTY LTD