Grocery alternative Supie released a statement this week announcing a new campaign that ‘aims to hold the other two supermarket giants to account’. This is ahead of the Commerce Commission’s final recommendations following their inquiry into the current duopoly. Those recommendations are due on March 8th, 2022.
The market study into the grocery sector is looking at the power the duopoly holds and the impact it has on consumers. The preliminary finding back in July, when the draft report was published, found that competition is not working well for consumers in the retail grocery sector. If competition was more effective, retailers would face stronger pressures to deliver the right prices, quality and range to satisfy a diverse range of consumer preferences. It called for government intervention.
Supie founder Sarah Balle, was an active participant in the November conference and has been vocal about the need for fairness and transparency in the sector. She is welcoming the findings on March 8th and hopes they will transform the broken supermarket industry.
“Everything we do at Supie is centered around fairness and honesty – fairness for consumers, fairness for suppliers, and fairness for our planet. Consumers can help to change the broken system and create a better, fairer and more honest grocery market in New Zealand. They just need to be mindful of who they are giving their hard earned money to each week.” says Sarah Balle.
“The current state of play is not fair and the supermarkets need to be held to account. They have a stranglehold on the sector and it’s making things so hard for smaller local food suppliers to get ahead. It also makes things so challenging for smaller players like ourselves- something really needs to change so all New Zealanders get a fairer experience.” Sarah is also mindful that even when the findings come in, it may take a long time for
change to occur as the government begins to implement any recommendations- and that’s where Supie plays an important part.
“When these findings come in, we know change will most certainly not happen overnight. Consumers don’t need to wait for the government to regulate change, as a solution is here already. Supie is ready to take on the challenge to be a key third player to drive fairness for customers. Supie believes that consumers have the power to be part of that change by choosing a fairer alternative.”
It will likely take the government quite some time to implement recommendations provided in this report when it is released in March, so change will not happen overnight. All New Zealanders deserve to know how their food is bought and sold, and Supie offers that transparency. Since launching in June to Auckland last year Supie has grown to nearly 10,000 members and is experiencing week on week growth and demand from consumers.
