The first week in May has seen big news for the FMCG industry.
Woolworths regains after tepid first half
Retail giant Woolworths Group’s sales lifted by 4.2 per cent over the March quarter.
Customer scores were slightly affected by fresh produce prices, quality and availability due to the wide scale drought and flood in Australia.
Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci said that he is satisfied with the improvement in sales momentum after dealing with a challenging first half of the year.
ALDI saves shoppers over $2 billion
Discount grocer ALDI has cut the costs for Australian shoppers for over A$2 billion on their national grocery bill each year, according to a report with PwC.
ALDI Australia CEO Tom Daunt said the supermarket giant created plenty of jobs for locals; expanded its private label manufacturers in Australia. Daunt used the report launch to pledge greater business transparency to the market.
Bega gets green light with peanut butter ruling
Dairy giant Bega Cheese profits soared after winning a legal battle to keep using the trademark yellow lids on its peanut butter jars.
Bega executive chairman Barry Irvin said federal court justice David O’Callaghan’s ruling which determined that Kraft Heinz’ use of the “trade dress is misleading or deceptive” under the law. Profit shares lifted by 9.2 per cent as the Victorian company wins exclusive rights to use the yellow lid and the red and blue product labels.
Australia names most ‘iconic’ brands
Australian brands Coles and Vegemite were named the best local brands in the 20th annual Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand Survey. Supermarket rivals Woolworths and ALDI placed further down the list. The magazine also named Penfolds, Weet-Bix and Cadbury.
Australian Reader’s Digest editor-in-chief, Louise Waterson said consumer’s trust is hard to gain due to the digital world infiltrated with fake news.
Muhtar Kent signs off from Coca-Cola
The Coca-Cola Company chairman Muhtar Kent has stepped down as chief executive James Quincey succeeded to stir the ship. He spent working for the soft drinks maker for more than four decades. He said he is “very proud and fortunate to have enjoyed this long, fruitful association with the world’s most-loved brand”. He brought in billion-dollar brands and strengthened its reputation in pledging to provide water access and improving women empowerment in the workforce.
That’s it for this week. Inside FMCG will be back on Monday morning to deliver again the headlines.
