Woolworths Admits Pre-Planned Price Hikes, Tricking Shoppers

0:00A senior Woolworth's manager just admitted in court that price hikes followed by drops sold as discounts were all pre-planned with suppliers. This came up in a federal court case in Sydney where the Australian competition and consumer commission is suing the supermarket over its prices. Dropped program, they claim it tricked shoppers with fake savings and a similar case targets coals too. Take these newsly bars from Carmans as the prime example. They set at $9 from January 2021 until late March 2022. Then prices jumped 22% to $11 for just 32 days before dropping to $10 under the discount label compared to. That short spike. That $10 tag stuck around for the next 374 days. The manager, with over 9 years at Woolworths, sets suppliers like Carmans push for this exact price path to get on the program. Meanwhile, refusing meant risking empty shelves since makers could cut off supply if retailers didn't play ball.

1:01Shoppers got hit with ads showing $10 as a bargain off $11, even though it was still $1 more than the usual $9 before the brief hike. The ACC argues this misleads everyday buyers scanning aisles. Under sharp questioning, the manager confirmed every price ship was locked in up front. The judge seemed frustrated with the ACC's approach, questioning if their overthinking would regular folks notice on those promo stickers. The case rolls on, exposing how supplier deals shape what we pay. Local news, powered by AI. This is Sydney News Today.