The two Australian supermarket giants are taking competitiveness up a notch, courtesy of a new campaign being rolled out by Coles.
As reported by Yahoo! Finance, Coles’ move to introduce giant bulk packs of groceries is putting the ball back in Woolworths’ court to come up with a move of their own to get ahead. The bulk packs of everyday items (tomato sauces, olive oil, coffee etc), are being sold in ‘Big Pack Value’ packages in a similar vein to Costco.
Says Lisa Ronson, Coles’ Chief Marketing Officer, “We are helping to lower the cost of dinner, lunch and breakfast solutions with a focus on own brand fresh products and branded big value packs in grocery.”
Over 300 discounts are being rolled out, though Coles have been plotting similar moves out throughout the year.
“As soon as one slashes the price, the other will follow.”
The focus of this recent campaign is centred largely on lowering meal costs right across breakfast, lunch and dinner. The price cuts are also going to be applied to gluten-free, low-fructose and the large amount of meat-free products, making the offers very tasty for customers to come across.
Last financial year, Coles’ earnings dropped 8.3% to $1.34 billion, and according to retail expert and QUT Associate Professor Gary Mortimer, this move by Coles is a calculated one to boost profit margins.
“As soon as one slashes the price, the other will follow.” he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
