In the world we live in, many share their concerns about the rising cost of living, particularly grocery prices.

That same harsh reality is what drove one man to take a bold and creative stand against Australia’s retail giants.

A lone campaigner armed with a stencil and paint has targeted the big supermarkets in response to skyrocketing grocery prices.

A lone campaigner wearing high-visibility clothes and a face mask was seen armed with a stencil and paint in big supermarkets. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

The man uploaded a minute-long video to social media on Friday, which showed him dressed in high-visibility clothing and a face mask as he snuck into Coles and Woolworths stores across Sydney.

In the clip, he used a stencil to alter a Woolworths Metro sign at Bondi Junction, changing the iconic 'we are the fresh food people' slogan to read 'the price gouge people'.

The lone campaigner paints on the walls of Woolworths as part of his protest against the rising costs of groceries. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

He does the same thing at a Coles store in nearby Rose Bay, changing their jingle 'down, down prices are down' to 'down, down morality is down'.

He does the same on the walls of Coles as part of his protest. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

The man's crusade was filmed over the 1980s hit 'We're Not Going to Take It' by Twisted Sister. Since then, it has gone viral, with many praising him for taking action against rising food prices.

'When you inevitably get a fine for this, please put up a GoFundMe on Reddit, and I will donate to cover part of the cost. Thanks for doing something more people should be doing,' one said.

'Hats off to you, sir. This is the type of protesting we need. Thank you for your service,' another added.

'Legend, I said to my partner today we need to not shop at Woolies for the small stuff anymore, the prices are f***ing ridiculous,' a third said.

You can watch the lone campaigner in action below:

The Supermarket giants have come under scrutiny after reaping record profits while claiming inflation and supply chain disruptions had driven up food costs. In the year to June, Coles recorded $41.8 billion in revenue, mostly due to a 6.1 per cent jump in supermarket sales. While Woolworths said its net profit climbed 13.7 per cent to $1.72 billion as food and grocery prices increased.

A Woolworths spokesperson said they are working everyday 'to help customers spend less with us'.

'We’re acutely aware of the pressure that’s being placed on Australian families through [the] cost of living increases, whether they are our customers or our team members,' they said.

'That’s why we have more than 6,000 weekly specials, more than 3,000 products on our Low Price program, dropped the price of 450 popular products for Spring and introduced Member Pricing.'

You can read more about Woolworths’ ‘Price Dropped’ program here and their latest program, ‘Member Price here.

Coles also stated its commitment to lower the costs of hundreds of more products over the next few months.

'We know cost-of-living pressures are front-of-mind for our customers and are always looking for ways to help their dollars stretch further,' a Coles spokesperson said.

'Coles announced it will bring down the price of more than 500 products for at least three months.'

You can learn more about Coles’s ‘Great Price, Hands Down’ program here.

Key Takeaways

• A man dressed in high-visibility clothing and a face mask sneaked into Sydney's Coles and Woolworths stores to protest rising food costs with paint and a stencil.
  
• The man uploaded a video of his protest to YouTube, showing him altering supermarket signs to read 'The Price Gouge People' and 'Down, Down, Morality Down'.
  
• Both Coles and Woolworths claim to be actively working to lower the cost of their products, with Coles promising to reduce prices on more than 500 products for at least three months.
  

Members, what do you think of this man’s actions? Do you think his methods are justified or dangerous? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

 

[Lesle]

In the world we live in, many share their concerns about the rising cost of living, particularly grocery prices.

That same harsh reality is what drove one man to take a bold and creative stand against Australia’s retail giants.

A lone campaigner armed with a stencil and paint has targeted the big supermarkets in response to skyrocketing grocery prices.

View attachment 29023

A lone campaigner wearing high-visibility clothes and a face mask was seen armed with a stencil and paint in big supermarkets. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

The man uploaded a minute-long video to social media on Friday, which showed him dressed in high-visibility clothing and a face mask as he snuck into Coles and Woolworths stores across Sydney.

In the clip, he used a stencil to alter a Woolworths Metro sign at Bondi Junction, changing the iconic 'we are the fresh food people' slogan to read 'the price gouge people'.

View attachment 29024

The lone campaigner paints on the walls of Woolworths as part of his protest against the rising costs of groceries. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

He does the same thing at a Coles store in nearby Rose Bay, changing their jingle 'down, down prices are down' to 'down, down morality is down'.

View attachment 29025

He does the same on the walls of Coles as part of his protest. Image source: Youtube/tomgjj.

The man's crusade was filmed over the 1980s hit 'We're Not Going to Take It' by Twisted Sister. Since then, it has gone viral, with many praising him for taking action against rising food prices.

'When you inevitably get a fine for this, please put up a GoFundMe on Reddit, and I will donate to cover part of the cost. Thanks for doing something more people should be doing,' one said.

'Hats off to you, sir. This is the type of protesting we need. Thank you for your service,' another added.

'Legend, I said to my partner today we need to not shop at Woolies for the small stuff anymore, the prices are f***ing ridiculous,' a third said.

You can watch the lone campaigner in action below:

The Supermarket giants have come under scrutiny after reaping record profits while claiming inflation and supply chain disruptions had driven up food costs. In the year to June, Coles recorded $41.8 billion in revenue, mostly due to a 6.1 per cent jump in supermarket sales. While Woolworths said its net profit climbed 13.7 per cent to $1.72 billion as food and grocery prices increased.

A Woolworths spokesperson said they are working everyday 'to help customers spend less with us'.

'We’re acutely aware of the pressure that’s being placed on Australian families through [the] cost of living increases, whether they are our customers or our team members,' they said.

'That’s why we have more than 6,000 weekly specials, more than 3,000 products on our Low Price program, dropped the price of 450 popular products for Spring and introduced Member Pricing.'

You can read more about Woolworths’ ‘Price Dropped’ program here and their latest program, ‘Member Price here.

Coles also stated its commitment to lower the costs of hundreds of more products over the next few months.

'We know cost-of-living pressures are front-of-mind for our customers and are always looking for ways to help their dollars stretch further,' a Coles spokesperson said.

'Coles announced it will bring down the price of more than 500 products for at least three months.'

You can learn more about Coles’s ‘Great Price, Hands Down’ program here.

Key Takeaways

• A man dressed in high-visibility clothing and a face mask sneaked into Sydney's Coles and Woolworths stores to protest rising food costs with paint and a stencil.
• The man uploaded a video of his protest to YouTube, showing him altering supermarket signs to read 'The Price Gouge People' and 'Down, Down, Morality Down'.
• Both Coles and Woolworths claim to be actively working to lower the cost of their products, with Coles promising to reduce prices on more than 500 products for at least three months.

Members, what do you think of this man’s actions? Do you think his methods are justified or dangerous? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

Good on him for standing up for everyone who thought about it

 

[Rob44]

If you find a dairy farmer who will sell you milk at the farmgate, you would be paying about the same as you pay at the supermarket! I quite enjoy farm-fresh milk with all the cream, but of course, the milk is not pasteurised.

There is no reason why you would not be able to attend lifestock sales yard and bid for a cow, sheep or pig. Of course, it would be cheaper to buy a life animal compared to one that has been butchered and cut up, regardeless of whether you buy the meat at the butchers or in the supermarket!

About 40 years ago, my then husband and I purchased half a beef from a butcher. Obviously it was hugely discounted, however, we had to pay soneone to cut it up and then much of it stayed in our freezer forever!

You can often find fruit and vegetables at farmgates and trust me, they are no cheaper than what you pay at the supermarket. A few years ago, I drove to Young during the cherry season hoping to find a good price for a box of cherries. The asking price was exactly the same as the supermarket prices and I left in disgust without buying any.

I doubt that you have any idea of the logistics and handling of produce, regardless of whether we speak of meat, vegetables, grain or fruit.

So far no-one has proved competent to answer my legitimate questions. Of there are logisitcs and other costs that go into the final price. But no-one can give me a simple answer to my simple questions? Fancy that.

 

[Rob44]

If you find a dairy farmer who will sell you milk at the farmgate, you would be paying about the same as you pay at the supermarket! I quite enjoy farm-fresh milk with all the cream, but of course, the milk is not pasteurised.

There is no reason why you would not be able to attend lifestock sales yard and bid for a cow, sheep or pig. Of course, it would be cheaper to buy a life animal compared to one that has been butchered and cut up, regardeless of whether you buy the meat at the butchers or in the supermarket!

About 40 years ago, my then husband and I purchased half a beef from a butcher. Obviously it was hugely discounted, however, we had to pay soneone to cut it up and then much of it stayed in our freezer forever!

You can often find fruit and vegetables at farmgates and trust me, they are no cheaper than what you pay at the supermarket. A few years ago, I drove to Young during the cherry season hoping to find a good price for a box of cherries. The asking price was exactly the same as the supermarket prices and I left in disgust without buying any.

I doubt that you have any idea of the logistics and handling of produce, regardless of whether we speak of meat, vegetables, grain or fruit.

Anything else to groan and moan about. I bet people run the opposite direction when they see you coming. Shop somewhere else.

I fully agree with your last comment. As for the guy shown vandalising Coles & Woolworths stores - I'm surprised there isn't another video showing him being arrested for vandalism. Perhaps that video will pop up sometime soon and he will be fined heavily or jailed to teach him a lesson that it is not his property - I hope so. There are other ways to show one's displeasure.

We work in offices, shops, manufacturing etc to earn wages to pay our bills. By doing this work the companies we work for are able to sell their products. They have to pay us to do a job so they need to be able to make some money on the sales of their products - not come out even or at a loss.

Where does every complainant on this forum think the money is going to come from??? It is from coverage of costs and then profit. No one likes to have to pay for things - but that is just a fact of life. So get over it everyone who doesn't agree.

 

[BRIAN KK]

Don't know about Coles but the Woolies so called price program I found is more often than not is for MULTIPLE buys of the same product only.