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Grocery prices - UK vs Australia from our recent reccie


SaffanZimbo

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Most of them do but some are open later. Cockburn central is open till 8 but only Coles and Big W are open everything else is shut. Coles and woolies remind me of when i was a kid growing up in Scotland and we had Scotmid and William Lows. The choice in the supermarkets here is terrible and I certainly don't want to spend my days off going to 10 different shops that are 20Km apart to save $10 which i just spent on petrol driving everywhere!

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Guest Ptp113
I'm surprised of they do cos even here in Adelaide the supermarkets are open till 9pm. And they open at midnight.

 

Me thinks he makes it up as he goes along.

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Yep I'm sure they do, if its not 5 then it's 6. Tried to go to one last week which was shut at 5

 

Just checked the Coles website (sad I know but I'm a bit OCD like that) and the Coles in and around the centre of Perth close at 9 during the week and at 5 on a Saturday.

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Guest Ptp113
Most of them do but some are open later. Cockburn central is open till 8 but only Coles and Big W are open everything else is shut. Coles and woolies remind me of when i was a kid growing up in Scotland and we had Scotmid and William Lows. The choice in the supermarkets here is terrible and I certainly don't want to spend my days off going to 10 different shops that are 20Km apart to save $10 which i just spent on petrol driving everywhere!

 

You chose WA yes?

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Most of them do but some are open later. Cockburn central is open till 8 but only Coles and Big W are open everything else is shut. Coles and woolies remind me of when i was a kid growing up in Scotland and we had Scotmid and William Lows. The choice in the supermarkets here is terrible and I certainly don't want to spend my days off going to 10 different shops that are 20Km apart to save $10 which i just spent on petrol driving everywhere!

 

According to the Coles website Cockburn central opens until 9pm during the week. Is the website wrong?

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Mate were in WA here, we " do things different " shops all closed up by 5pm on weekends. That's in the city too.

 

Nah, it's the same here on the weekends. The supermarkets open till 9pm during the week though. And we have late night shopping in normal shops on a Thursday night. The excitement is just too much to bear....

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Guest The Pom Queen
Nah, it's the same here on the weekends. The supermarkets open till 9pm during the week though. And we have late night shopping in normal shops on a Thursday night. The excitement is just too much to bear....

Our late night is Thursday, why don't they do it on a Friday

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E

According to the Coles website Cockburn central opens until 9pm during the week. Is the website wrong?

No good for me mate, that's 50k away. The point is they close to early during the week putting pressure on your weekends, yes I'm sure you get the odd metro express store open but again it 35 km away. WA need to step up and realise people work more hours than ever so we need things open later. Was in Melbourne 6 weeks ago and most things were open up till 9 which was good.

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E No good for me mate, that's 50k away. The point is they close to early during the week putting pressure on your weekends, yes I'm sure you get the odd metro express store open but again it 35 km away. WA need to step up and realise people work more hours than ever so we need things open later. Was in Melbourne 6 weeks ago and most things were open up till 9 which was good.

 

Have you checked the Coles website for opening times recently? The Coles near us has only been opening till 9 for the last couple of months so it might be that they are rolling out extended hours through all stores as a more recent thing. It's also in a shopping centre where everything else (except woolworths) closes at 5pm so it might be that the supermarkets are now putting pressure on the shopping centres to remain open later so they can have extended trading hours.

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Up until very recently (September last year?) shops in WA (outside of few designated 'tourist' areas) were allowed to stay open until late on Thursday's only and HAD to shut at 5:30 every other weekday and 5pm Saturdays - Sunday trading was not allowed.

 

The law was changed BUT practice has necessarily caught up yet in many places. The way of life is different in Perth isn't this why most people come? If you want 24 hour supermarkets and one stop shopping stay in the UK or go elsewhere in Australia.

 

Within 1 km of my house I have two 'shopping centres' about 300m apart, there is a Woolworths and bakers at one, a greengrocers and deli at the other. Also within a km of my house is a huge fish wholesaler. 3km away is Fremantle with two more supermarkets and everything else you could possibly want.

 

There are often heated debates on here about where to live in Perth and this thread really shows that where you live matters. I wouldn't want to travel 20km to do weekly shopping either and maybe this is a reality in the new areas on the fringes of Perth Metro area. I guess most people used to UK style shopping assume so long as there is a supermarket they'll have everything they need!

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E No good for me mate, that's 50k away. The point is they close to early during the week putting pressure on your weekends, yes I'm sure you get the odd metro express store open but again it 35 km away. WA need to step up and realise people work more hours than ever so we need things open later. Was in Melbourne 6 weeks ago and most things were open up till 9 which was good.

 

Why so we can work even longer hours? How about keeping shop opening hours the same and reducing working hours ? Surely that would be progress?

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Lol we need to work longer hours so we can afford to live somewhere that is not 100km from the CBD!

 

True LOL

 

Don't forget there is always Butler ;)

 

Sad though, even in 4 years I have seen WA become homogenous with the rest of Australia and more and more like the UK. The reasons I came for are quickly disappearing, with 24 hour supermarkets in Perth I might as well be back in Falkirk!

 

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On the plus side I echo what everyone else says, don't buy your fruit and veg at supermarkets! I will be off shortly to the farmers market where I can get locally grown, extremely fresh, SEASONAL produce for around half the cost of Woolies or Coles. For me it is a matter of conscience as much as money saving and I love the Aussie way of shopping, greengrocers, fishmongers, delis, bakers. I can go to each of these as quickly and easily as walking around the typical Tesco 'warehouse' and get real service - in fact the only downside is stopping to have a chat in each one does mean it takes longer but I don't find shopping a chore here so it doesn't matter.

 

 

 

Certainly agree with you there, Jules! :biggrin:

 

I do an online supermarket shop for non perishables but support the local retailers for others - superior freshness and quality, cheaper price, knowing exactly where it has come from and supporting locals who are really interested in food and service to the community (they'll go out of their way to source something special if you ask).

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Guest guest74886
Having just returned from our reccie, I have finally got around to updating my grocery prices spreadsheet which is attached (I hope.... had a bit of trouble as it wouldn't attach my excel worksheet so had to pdf it!).

 

For anyone who is interested I can send on the excel worksheet (boring I know!).

 

Honestly - yes, I found the food prices shocking when comparing using the £ exchange rate of 1.4 BUT as those living in Perth will tell you salaries are much higher than the UK so taken in context they are affordable.

 

I shopped mostly at Coles and Woolworths and appreciate that their prices are higher than if I had shopped around but I was in unfamiliar territory so stuck to the shops in the area we stayed.

 

Hopefully by the time we move Aldi and Costco will have opened in Perth to give the big supermarkets more competition!

 

NOTE:

One thing which did shock me was that our host bought a Dyson DC39 Animal whilst we were staying with her and she paid $796. The same Dyson in the UK is £271.99 in Tesco!!!! I will be investing in a new Dyson before we move!:wacko:

 

It's difficult not to exclaim at this and avoid it becoming a UK v Oz diatribe, but it's not just Perth where prices are high and yes the arrival of Aldi does seem to have injected a bit of competition but prices are still high and seem to reflect much more what the two main retailers here think they can get away with, but also it is about the quality of items such as cheese and Deli goods here which are very expensive,

The excuse always trotted out here is about the distances that things have to travel but I'm sure a lot of fresh produce is sourced locally and if it is not then the question has to be asked why not and as an alternative a lot of produce in the UK is flown in but is still cheaper than here and in the UK the transport industry is much more strictly controlled than here so why is transport always used as an excuse.

For me the issue is paying top dollar for mediocre quality in utilitarian surroundings that suggest that the shop was designed and built in the 1970's.

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The farming industry in the UK has been destroyed by cheap supermarket prices - no industry is sustainable if production costs are more than the on sale price. There are signs that Australia will go the same way ie the milk wars. I do buy milk in the supermarket but I will never buy own brand milk and I am happy to pay more to keep milk production a local industry.

 

Dont forget WA farmers live in WA too and have the same cost of living as the rest of us.

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There shut when I get home from work. In WA shopping centres close at 5. And there are 20 years behind UK supermarkets in terms of choice. Coles and woolworths remind my of going back in time when we used to go to kwik save after school.

 

Hit the nail on the head Paul. I live in Melbourne and it's like living in rural 1980's uk:arghh: My teenage daughter is depressed the shops have limmited choice and VERY expensive.

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Hit the nail on the head Paul. I live in Melbourne and it's like living in rural 1980's uk:arghh: My teenage daughter is depressed the shops have limmited choice and VERY expensive.
In Scotland our local shops were crap as well. If you wanted something to wear to a Wedding etc you went to Glasgow or Edinburgh shopping so here you can go into the CBD and get the decent shops.
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Because it is part of the process of evaluating if it is worth it. There is no point moving for some sunshine and finding you cant afford to eat. Also, many of us are paid the same amount regardless of which country.

I get it that people want to find out what it costs but what is the point of comparing every single thing on a shopping list. It is not going to stop you moving if a tin of beans costs 50p in the UK and 60p here.

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