Coles follows as Woolworths drops prices in the race for cheaper groceries
By
Seia Ibanez
- Replies 7
In today's economy, managing the household budget can be a struggle, especially with the rising cost of living and groceries.
Yet, here is some refreshing news—supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths are stepping up to the plate to relieve some of the financial burden shoppers face.
First off the mark has been Woolworths, who announced they would be dropping the price of more than 400 items in their stores, including fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and seafood, pantry staples, and household-cleaning items.
In particular, they've reduced the price of 600-gram packs of sausages by almost 30 per cent to $5, which they said was their 'lowest price on individual packs since 2019'.
Coles and Woolworths are making a price drop in their products. Merged photo credit: Seniors Discount Club
Coles also jumped on the bandwagon and committed to dropping the price of their 550g pack of Coles The Original Beef Sausages from $6.60 to $4.50, and 560g of Simply Thin BBQ Sausages range from $6.50 to $4.60. This lets Coles represent prices of $7 per kilogram compared to Woolworths’ $8.33.
A spokesperson for Coles said the price of 600 products would lower starting Wednesday, 29 November, but it is only locked in until 2 January. On the other hand, Woolworths said that prices of 400 products would remain low until 27 February next year.
Outside of the items on promotion, the cost of vegetables is decreasing.
Woolworths noted that the price of some items, such as vine-ripened tomatoes, quarter-cut red and savoy cabbages, blueberries, and five packs of avocados, are around 40 per cent cheaper compared to October last year.
‘Some of the highlights across categories of vegetables include tomatoes, sweetcorn, and capsicums (all down by 20 per cent, on average, compared to last year),’ Woolworths noted.
They added, ‘While for fruit, blueberries and avocados as a whole are down an average [of] 35 per cent compared to last year. Looking ahead, summer fruits–including cherries and stone fruit–are set to be in abundance, which means better pricing. Mangoes are also currently great value, starting from $2.50 for Calypso mangoes from Wednesday.’
Coles also lowered the price of its vegetables, such as corn (less 37 per cent), capsicum and zucchini (less 30 per cent), and eggplant (less 20 per cent) due to deflation.
A spokesperson for Coles said, ‘Our stonefruit and cherry season is looking very strong with this week's forecasted wet weather.’
Coles’ fruits, like stonefruit, avocados, and melons, lowered their retail price by 10 per cent, 40 per cent, and 15 per cent, respectively, yearly.
What have these two supermarkets dropped the prices of? Check the infographic below to see the difference:
The price war between these two supermarket giants may be a welcome relief to Australian shoppers who seem to be facing continually rising prices.
As the holiday season approaches, Woolworths matched Coles’ Christmas ham when it announced that it was reducing the price to $8 per kilogram.
Both supermarkets released Christmas ranges and promised shoppers their products could feed a family of eight for under $10.
Coles also announced it would lower the price of its lamb from $10 to $8 when Woolies dropped its price earlier this month.
Woolworths said it was ‘the lowest promotional price on lamb leg roasts since February 2017, and the lowest regular price on lamb since June 2013,’ with no complaints from consumers.
According to Woolworths Supermarkets Managing Director Natalie Davis, the supermarket has 'seen strong customer demand to our recent Prices Dropped program, including 20 per cent off all our standard lamb cuts, where customers bought 60 per cent more lamb chops and cutlets in the first week of the program’.
Coles and Woolworths have revealed in their first quarter results that their prices dropped significantly due to the lower global input costs. However, grocery inflation remained elevated at 5.7 per cent for Coles and 4 per cent for Woolworths compared to the previous year. Read more about the story here.
Have you noticed the price drops in these supermarkets? Do you think the quality of these products is still the same despite the price reduction? Let us know in the comments below!
Yet, here is some refreshing news—supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths are stepping up to the plate to relieve some of the financial burden shoppers face.
First off the mark has been Woolworths, who announced they would be dropping the price of more than 400 items in their stores, including fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and seafood, pantry staples, and household-cleaning items.
In particular, they've reduced the price of 600-gram packs of sausages by almost 30 per cent to $5, which they said was their 'lowest price on individual packs since 2019'.
Coles and Woolworths are making a price drop in their products. Merged photo credit: Seniors Discount Club
Coles also jumped on the bandwagon and committed to dropping the price of their 550g pack of Coles The Original Beef Sausages from $6.60 to $4.50, and 560g of Simply Thin BBQ Sausages range from $6.50 to $4.60. This lets Coles represent prices of $7 per kilogram compared to Woolworths’ $8.33.
A spokesperson for Coles said the price of 600 products would lower starting Wednesday, 29 November, but it is only locked in until 2 January. On the other hand, Woolworths said that prices of 400 products would remain low until 27 February next year.
Outside of the items on promotion, the cost of vegetables is decreasing.
Woolworths noted that the price of some items, such as vine-ripened tomatoes, quarter-cut red and savoy cabbages, blueberries, and five packs of avocados, are around 40 per cent cheaper compared to October last year.
‘Some of the highlights across categories of vegetables include tomatoes, sweetcorn, and capsicums (all down by 20 per cent, on average, compared to last year),’ Woolworths noted.
They added, ‘While for fruit, blueberries and avocados as a whole are down an average [of] 35 per cent compared to last year. Looking ahead, summer fruits–including cherries and stone fruit–are set to be in abundance, which means better pricing. Mangoes are also currently great value, starting from $2.50 for Calypso mangoes from Wednesday.’
Coles also lowered the price of its vegetables, such as corn (less 37 per cent), capsicum and zucchini (less 30 per cent), and eggplant (less 20 per cent) due to deflation.
A spokesperson for Coles said, ‘Our stonefruit and cherry season is looking very strong with this week's forecasted wet weather.’
Coles’ fruits, like stonefruit, avocados, and melons, lowered their retail price by 10 per cent, 40 per cent, and 15 per cent, respectively, yearly.
What have these two supermarkets dropped the prices of? Check the infographic below to see the difference:
The price war between these two supermarket giants may be a welcome relief to Australian shoppers who seem to be facing continually rising prices.
As the holiday season approaches, Woolworths matched Coles’ Christmas ham when it announced that it was reducing the price to $8 per kilogram.
Both supermarkets released Christmas ranges and promised shoppers their products could feed a family of eight for under $10.
Coles also announced it would lower the price of its lamb from $10 to $8 when Woolies dropped its price earlier this month.
Woolworths said it was ‘the lowest promotional price on lamb leg roasts since February 2017, and the lowest regular price on lamb since June 2013,’ with no complaints from consumers.
According to Woolworths Supermarkets Managing Director Natalie Davis, the supermarket has 'seen strong customer demand to our recent Prices Dropped program, including 20 per cent off all our standard lamb cuts, where customers bought 60 per cent more lamb chops and cutlets in the first week of the program’.
Coles and Woolworths have revealed in their first quarter results that their prices dropped significantly due to the lower global input costs. However, grocery inflation remained elevated at 5.7 per cent for Coles and 4 per cent for Woolworths compared to the previous year. Read more about the story here.
Key Takeaways
- Coles has announced price cuts on multiple items to compete with Woolworths, which had declared price reductions on over 400 items.
- Coles will reduce the price of their 550g pack of sausages from $6.60 to $4.50 and 560g of Simply sausages from $6.50 to $4.60, placing them at a cheaper rate per kilogram than Woolworths.
- Alongside the 'price drop' promotions, the cost of vegetables is trending downward due to deflation, offering shoppers further savings.
- Coles and Woolworths have been continuing a price war, which is seen as an opportunity for customers to save money amidst the rising cost of living.
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