Question: Where do you shop? ALDI, IGA, Woolworths, Coles or CostCo?

What is your shopping preference? ALDI, IGA, Woolworths, Coles or CostCo?

Each of these companies have the resources to understand why shoppers choose their products, but do you know or understand why you choose their products?

You and I, the average shopper, is less likely to understand why we choose to shop at these stores, in most cases it’s based on price or convenience or the apparent believe that you are getting a good deal.  Good deals get a bit blurry when almost every product is labeled “new and improved or 20% extra for the same price.

Beerwah has three good grocery stores, ALDI, IGA and Woolworths and as a commentator I’m soft on all of them because I feel they add value to the overall community and so I  shop at each of them, but I won’t shop at at the convenience store in either of the Servo’s in town.

Why not shop at the Servo’s ?

There are a couple of reasons I’m reluctant to shop at either of the two Fuel Servo’s in town, (apart from purchasing fuel).

Why? asks the reader.

The one good reason is because they are expensive  (compared to stores), but the main reason is because I feel that each of the Servos reflect the heart of the companies which own and manage them.

Let me explain!

I will start with the Shell Servo in Beerwah:

Each week they have a different poster up offering a discount product if you buy fuel, ( the discount may be for something like Cornertto ice creams, Chocolate Drinks, Pies or energy drinks),  but just you try and buy one of them ….. they are never in stock !!!

Why are you out of stock?  HQ  didn’t send us enough.  Well then discount something else. We can’t do that,  the specials come from head office … ok then take off your sign if you don’t have stock.  We can’t do that.  (I don’t believe you can keep a sign up and get customers to believe you are offering discounts when you don’t have the products available.)   But they are a small country outlet,  …. err … no they are not,if they can’t make their own decisions they’re not a small outlet.

On one occasion that Cornetto ice creams were discounted and they surprisingly had stock available, (I was on the way to the beach with my family) I picked up 6 Cornettos and presented them to the cash register which immediately attempted to plunder my wallet !!!  “Hang on” I cried “these Cornettos are only $1.50 each  (or something like that)”.

“No!” cried the Teller “only the first Cornetto is at a discount price!!”

What! I fill up my tank and I get ‘one’ discounted Cornetto?  I still pay full price for the other five Cornetto’s !!

Moving on to the Servo at Woolwooths in Beerwah:   

Why don’t I buy the products in the Woolworths servo store? for exactly the same reason.

They simply wish to plunder my wallet, and charge me extra for the products I can already purchase in their nearby store for much less,  They could easily increase loyalty by providing the same value everywhere.

They advertise “low prices every day” which does not mean “low prices everywhere, everyday”,

Woolworths,  according to News.com.au – Supermarket monsters: How Coles and Woolworths suffocate us is one of Australia’s two supermarket giants and I personally see no reason why they can’t sell products in the Woolworths Sever at the same price they do inside the store, but they choose not to, and it’s this choice they make, which I feel which reflects their business heart.

They will charge you as much as they possibly can. – fair or not fair?

I have a bee in my bonnet about this issue and someday I’ll measure the distance between the Woolworths Servo and the nearest Woolworth Store Cash register and see if there is a math formula which can be applied, something like.

Cost of Product = Time / Distance * Stupid

“Australia  apparently has the most concentrated supermarket industry of any country in the world”. – this leaves us with fewer shopping choices.

As I said earlier I am pretty soft because I like, support and appreciate all the shops we have in Beerwah, but if you want to read a more punchy book about the injustice of the supermarket giants read a book by Malcolm Knox called  Supermarket Monsters: The Price of Coles and Woolworths’ Dominance, or you can head over to News.com.au and read their article called Supermarket monsters: How Coles and Woolworths suffocate us – ( the videos in this article are well worth watching).

So back to the original question!

Where do you shop and why?

Please comment here or on Facebook, or Twitter or on the Community Forum at http://www.glasshousecountry.com/forums/ & please feel free to raise your own concerns and thoughts about any topic related to our community.  What should we write about next?

Footnote:  Although this is a blog, I, like the BBC and the Australian Constitution,  offer the right to reply – Extract from the BBC Website – “When our output makes allegations of wrongdoing, iniquity or incompetence or lays out a strong and damaging critique of an individual or institution the presumption is that those criticised should be given a “right of reply”, that is, given a fair opportunity to respond to the allegations.”

Please feel free to comment and tell us “Where do you shop in Beerwah, and why?“