‘Negotiate, inform staff and make good with customers’: The vital next step for Woolies and Coles as Federal Court proceedings loom

People achieve trust through competence, character, and care. The same can be true for brands, and both are tested under pressure, where trust counts the most. So, what happens when the ACCC alleges that two of the biggest brands in Australia engaged in deceptive discounting practices to their customers, especially when that allegation is made during a period of heightened cost-of-living pressure?

As is usually the case, the questions first come from customers and pricing movements were noticed by the sharp-eyed in increasing instances.

Concerns were voiced on social media forums, including Reddit, and many of them posed questions. For example, Woolworths allegedly raised the price of Oreo family packs from $3.50 to $5 before claiming a discounted price of $4.50. At what points was the item discounted?

The ACCC alleges that misleading and deceptive pricing occurred across hundreds of products, including brand favourites like Tim Tams, Twisties, and Coca-Cola. These promotional pricing practices formed part of the brand positioning of slogans like Coles’ “Down Down”, or Woolworths’ “Prices Dropped”, and the ACCC’s case rests on the argument that they misled consumers in these instances by artificially inflating prices before offering so-called discounts.