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Woolworths Supermarkets

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This article is about the Australian supermarket. For other retail establishments of the same name, see Woolworth's (disambiguation).
Woolworths Supermarkets
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1924
Headquarters
Bella Vista, New South Wales
,
Australia
Number of locations
834 [1]
Key people
Michael Luscombe, CEO
RevenueIncrease A$42.3 billion (2007)
Number of employees
175,000
ParentWoolworths Limited
WebsiteWoolworths.com.au
Woolworth supermarket located in the Wagga Wagga Marketplace
A rebranded Woolworths store in Temora, New South Wales
Melbourne's first newly branded Woolworths supermarket in Chadstone, Victoria.[1]
The 21-year-old Woolworths supermarkets logo, used from 1987 until 2008

Woolworths is the largest supermarket chain in Australia, owned by Woolworths Limited. In Victoria some stores still[when?] trade as Safeway but as these are being refurbished they are being rebranded.

History

Woolworths Limited was founded in 1924, with the first store opening up in Sydney's Imperial Arcade.[2]

2011 Profit reports and business Diversification

Woolworths is a retailer with primary activities in Supermarkets - Food & Liquor and gambling- these represent the majority of group sales. Other operations include: BIGW discount department stores; Consumer Electronics through Dick Smith, Powerhouse and Tandy; Petrol through the Woolworths/Caltex alliance; and Hotels following an active acquisition program. Supermarkets are also operated in New Zealand. Supermarket size liquor stores (Dan Murphies), smaller liquor outlets branded as BWS, Woolworths and Safeway liquor Hotel divisions which also include significant numbers of poker machines add more diversity. Gross reported profit of SALES OF $54.1 BILLION for the year ending 26th of June 2011 shows the significant diversification away from food- supermarket operations. In Millions, supermarkets reported sales of 46,312, Liquor 36,176, hotels 1,153 gambling pokies is not reported separately in the FULL YEAR SALES RESULTS 52 WEEKS TO 26th JUNE 2011 or in the half year reports but comments on benefits expected from changes in Victorian Gaming laws in the Hotel division half year reports suggest gambling is hidden in the hotel reports.

Community objections to Woolworths

Business development has both supporters and people/communities opposed. Woolworths has significant legal resources to deal with opposition to its development plans. Woolworths is currently taking legal actions to stop the Manningham City council sell land to allow a new supermarket in Jackson Court Doncaster East. Other legal fights with Woolworths included protests against the liquor licences application for a Woolworths Dan Murphies in Preston beside a alcohol rehabilitation centre

Headlines Woolworths

Fury as Dan Murphy's gets the nod

Woolworths reaping billions from pokies in poorer suburbs

Fair bet Wilkie on a winner with anti-pokies crusade

Inappropriate Development Trashed a Platypus HabitatObi Obi Creek Riparian Zone - Maleny Queensland Australia

Woolworths and Coles 'play foul'


2008 rebranding

On 22 August 2008, Woolworths announced it was launching a new identity for all its supermarkets and plans to replace the Safeway brand in Victoria, in order to unite all of its supermarkets under one common brand 'Woolworths'.[3]

The logo, which had been in use for 21 years, was replaced with a new brand image, designed by Hans Hulsbosch[4] with a new green tinted icon representing the 'W' in Woolworths with the addition of a stylised leaf to suggest fresh produce. It is also reminiscent of a 1970s Woolworths logo. However, the company's slogan, "The Fresh Food People", which is known throughout Australia, remains as a key part of the new logo. The company introduced these changes in order to further distance itself from its major rival Coles Supermarkets, and to make its branding more modern, 'softer' and more likeable.[5]

In September 2009, this rebranding scheme was extended to New Zealand stores where the new Woolworths symbol is to be used alongside the Countdown brand.[6]

In October 2009, it was reported that Apple Inc. had lodged an objection to Woolworths' trademark application with the Australian Government's intellectual property agency IP Australia, claiming that the logo resembles its own. The reports said that Apple was concerned that Woolworths had applied for a blanket trademark for the design, so it could be placed on any product – even on electrical goods like computers and music players. Woolworths was not selling its own brand electrical goods then, but a spokeswoman for the company said that, "While we can't rule anything out, we haven't got any plans at the moment."[7][8] Woolworths' rebranding program in its 802 Australian stores had been in progress barely over a year.

Loyalty schemes

Discount fuel offers

Since 1996 Woolworths has offered its customers a number of incentives for purchasing at their stores by subsidising petrol prices at Caltex Woolworths petrol stations and the now defunct Woolworths Plus Petrol. Discounts included 2-cent, 4-cent, 6-cent and in some regional areas 10-cent discounts on fuel when purchases over certain amounts were conducted. As of September 2009, the current offer is a 4 cent/L discount when transactions of over $30 are conducted in-store, with a further 4 cent discount available if customers spend another $5 or more on other items at the petrol site.

Everyday rewards and credit card

See also: Everyday Rewards
File:Woolworths-Everyday-Rewards.png
Everyday Rewards Card

In September 2007, a trial began in central west New South Wales of Everyday Rewards, a Woolworths shopping card that automatically tracks supermarket purchases and stores fuel discount entitlements, thus eliminating the need for shoppers to retain paper coupons previously used for this purpose.[9] In addition it allows Woolworths to record purchases made by customers to offer them relevant promotions and for studies in demographics and marketing,[10] hence incentives for customers who register their details. This followed Woolworths announcement that is was planning to launch a general purpose credit card in 2008.[11] Woolworths is expected to offer these credit cardholders reward vouchers redeemable throughout its store network.[12] Woolworths subsequently announced that the Woolworths Everyday Money MasterCard would be launched on 26 August 2008 and allows customers to earn shopping cards redeemable at Woolworths group retailers.[13][14]

In February 2008, Woolworths announced that following the NSW trial, its Everyday Rewards card would be rolled out nationally, beginning with South Australia and Northern Territory in mid-February, and to other states (excluding Tasmania[15]) by the end of May 2008. During the NSW trial, 50,000 cards were issued to customers.[16]

Woolworths stated in June 2008 that "well over a million" shoppers had taken a card and registered their details.[17] In August 2008, Woolworths stated that there were 3.8 million cards "on issue", with 2.4 million cards "registered".[18]

From June 2009, Everyday Rewards cardholders were able to earn Qantas Frequent Flyer points, by using their Everyday Rewards cards. Cardholders who had successfully linked their Frequent Flyer card to their registered Everyday Rewards card can earn one Frequent Flyer point for every dollar over $30 that they spent in store. In August 2009, Woolworths announced that there were 3.8 million cards "registered", of which 1.2 million were linked to a Qantas Frequent Flyer account.[19]

Frequent Shopper Club

The Frequent Shopper Club, or F$C, is a reward program for shopping in Woolworths stores in Tasmania. It was started by Purity Supermarkets in the early 1990s before it was sold to Woolworths in the 1990s. It is still in use today.[20]

Other Woolworths Limited supermarkets

A Woolworths supermarket in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales
  • Woolworths still trades as Safeway in most locations in Victoria, and some towns on the Victorian border (e.g. Moama, NSW). From 2008, a rebranding program will see these stores progressively branded as Woolworths.
  • In Tasmania, Woolworths traded as Roelf Vos and Purity prior to being rebranded as Woolworths in 2000
  • In New Zealand, Woolworths operates supermarkets under three brands - Woolworths, Countdown and Foodtown. It is currently rebranding all stores with the design used by Woolworths throughout New Zealand under the Countdown name.
  • Food For Less is a discount supermarket chain located in Queensland and New South Wales
  • Flemings is a group of four supermarkets located in Sydney and the Central Coast
  • Woolworths launched Thomas Dux Grocer in two New South Wales locations in 2008. Thomas Dux Grocer stores have a larger fresh food offering than traditional Woolworths stores, along with a larger delicatessen section.[21]

References

  1. ^ "Gandel and Colonial Open $140 Million Wing of Chadstone Shopping Centre". Retrieved 5 February 2009.
  2. ^ "Our Story". Woolworth's Limited. Retrieved 1 April 2010. [dead link]
  3. ^ Sharp, Ari (21 August 2008). "Woolies shelves Safeway brand". The Age, Melbourne. Retrieved 21 August 2008.
  4. ^ "Designer Explains new Woolworths Logo". foodweek.com.au. 22 August 2008. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  5. ^ "Woolworths launches new look after 21 years" (PDF). Woolworths Limited. 22 August 2008. Retrieved 23 August 2008. [dead link]
  6. ^ http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10598704
  7. ^ Lee, Julian (5 October 2009). "Apple bites over Woolworths logo". The Age. Melbourne.
  8. ^ Rakowski, Ian (6 October 2009). "Woolies and Apple locked in trademark brand battle". news.com.au.
  9. ^ Fuel change on the cards, Australian Financial Review, 6 September 2007, p. 20
  10. ^ "Everyday Rewards Customer Charter". Woolworths Everyday Rewards. Retrieved 23 August 2008.
  11. ^ "Now it's Woolworths the credit card people". Sydney Morning Herald. 27 August 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
  12. ^ Retailers take on the banks…again, Australian Financial Review, 30 January 2008, pp. 1, 61
  13. ^ "Woolworths launches new credit card". news.com.au. 18 August 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  14. ^ "Woolies MasterCard debuts in two weeks". The Sheet. 15 August 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2008. [dead link]
  15. ^ "Everyday Rewards terms and conditions". Woolworths. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
  16. ^ Woolies revs up discount petrol war, Australian Financial Review, 11 February 2008, pp. 1, 15
  17. ^ "Fuel's gold as a million people play cards with Woolworths". Sydney Morning Herald. 5 June 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  18. ^ "Full Year Results Presentation" (PDF). Woolworths Limited. Retrieved 29 August 2008.
  19. ^ "Full Year Results Presentation" (PDF). Woolworths Limited. Retrieved 2000-00-17. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  20. ^ http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2009/07/18/85321_tasmania-news.html
  21. ^ "Woolworths to launch new grocery chain". Inside Retailing. 13 December 2007. Retrieved 19 December 2007. [dead link]
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