Try a vegetable
No problems with fruit or vegies.
Coles is leaving its Hawthorn East complex for an office building in Docklands, currently occupied by Medibank.
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I’m trying a new diet with no milk, bread and fruit. This diet is trending in SE Queensland at the moment. Here are some photos of Woolworths in Fortitude Valley yesterday at 5pm.
Next time I eat a grape I swear I am going to moan.
The good thing is the money I spend on my weekly shop has fallen by 60%.
Note to Aldi shoppers: the empty fruit and veg section is not normal in other supermarkets
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The LEGO Group closed more stores than it opened in 2024 as its retail expansion slowed in comparison to previous years, despite skyrocketing profits and sales.
While revenue, consumer sales and operating profit all reached record highs in 2024 thanks to increased demand and ‘a resilient supply chain’, the LEGO Group opened just 74 new stores last year. That’s a much smaller leap than we’ve seen in previous years: 165 stores opened worldwide in 2021, 155 opened in 2022, and 147 opened for the first time in 2023.
The total number of LEGO Stores operating around the world is now 1,069, which from 2024 also includes 40 stores in LEGOLAND parks and LEGOLAND Discovery Centres operated by Merlin Entertainments. That number is two down from the equivalent count in 2023.
https://www.brickfanatics.com/lego-closed-more-stores-than-opened-in-2024/
Melbourne is one of few cities around the world which has a LEGOLAND Discovery Centre (at Chadstone) and a LEGO retail store (Certified Stores at Melbourne Central and Westfield Doncaster).
We may hear more about something like this happening for Aus Post (and I hope I don’t get into bother for this) in the upcoming election. I’m almost certain they want to go to permanent 3 day per week delivery to save money on paying 2nd rate contractors (and I’ll stay that civil in describing some of them we have in CQ) by getting already employed posties to do that job a couple of days a week staying on their usual hourly rate, but that needs an act of parliament to change and it’s probably low on the agenda. This year’s letter delivery for us will be boosted by elections, but next year will likely see the future of letter delivery questioned in earnest once again, a far cry from when I started 17 years ago when often 60-80 trays had to be sorted most nights (it’s now 6-8 if that).
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Is the Doncaster store still around?
Ah yes, the Lego Doncaster store is still in operation.
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Are the trollies gaining sentience?
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Mosaic Brands (Millers, Rivers ETC) closed down yesterday.
All websites have been disconnected.
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The Australian reports (via Mediaweek)
Bunnings is expanding into assisted living, predicting the category could be a $2.1 billion market as demand for mobility scooters, anti-slip mats, and safety rails surges. With Australia’s ageing population, rising disability rates, and the backing of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), the retailer sees long-term growth in a sector that remains resilient despite cost-of-living pressures hitting other discretionary retail categories.
The Wesfarmers-owned hardware giant has rolled out an expanded range of over 2,500 assisted-living products across 16 categories, catering to a growing number of Australians who want to age at home with both safety and style.
I have t read the report yet - hahah - but I would he fascinated to see if they’ve reflected on their own contribution to that.
I feel like they have approved several decisions in this space that ultimately contributes to what we have today.
We used to have Action supermarkets in WA and Queensland - but the ACCC gave the approval for IGA to buy them and for a bunch of stores to be sold to Woolies / Coles. Same again with Franklins.
Imagine if we had a strong third player to challenge Woolies and Coles (along with Aldi, Costco and IGA which doesn’t seem interested to compete on price)
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Aldi needs a greater presence in areas like FNQ and Tasmania. Cairns doesn’t even have a Aldi yet. I get the logistic overheads up that way are very high but they are about the only player to keep the other two in check.
The Townsville Aldi has struggled to keep up with the demand and is often empty and negatively reviewed by locals due to no stock.
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Coles and Woolworths have the same grocery prices across Australia, the Coles in Alice Springs has the same prices as the Coles in Wollongong. In a way, city shoppers subsidise those in regional areas, where transport costs should push up prices. I doubt that an Aldi in Cairns would thus have a large impact on grocery prices in FNQ.
Of course, standardised prices only applies to grocery prices and not fruit, vegetables and meat. With fruit and veges, price is used to ration the product and ensure that product clears before it is past its peak (think bananas).
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In actual fact it’s state based pricing not Australia wide. But what can be the case is that in towns with only an IGA they can be very expensive uneccessarily in certain areas just because there is no competition so people travel to a town with a Coles or Woolworths. The IGA in that town 30 minutes up the road would have cheaper prices as well so freight costs factor in but not completely plus economies of scale also contribute but some of it is pure profiteering nothing more.
You’d think that was the case and it makes sense, but the opposite can also be true.
My local Ritchies IGA is only supermarket in town. Absolutely loved by locals. They bake goods in-store, have their own butchery, a sushi bar and stock more items than your average Coles. They’re big on price-matching.
Over in Beaudesert where there’s a Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and Jones & Co IGA, the IGA is far more expensive. Because they’ve positioned themselves more as a ‘gourmet’ type supermarket.
For example, the HP sauce that costs me $4.48 at Ricthies costs $5.99 at Jones & Co. The good thing is the specials (and IGA has great specials) are still the same at both.
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