Aldi Australia CEO, Tom Daunt has hit back at Dick Smith, who claimed that Aldi’s ability to reduce overheads and cut prices by using less staff in stores and less expensive overseas suppliers was the main cause behind the closure of the Dick Smith Foods business.
“Our focus on the essentials and our optimisation of the discount principle has made Aldi the successful Australian retailer it is today,” Daunt said in a statement.
“We offer approximately 1,600 grocery items and a changing selection of 80 to 120 Special Buys every week. The business started with two stores in NSW (Bankstown and Marrickville) and has now expanded to more than 500 stores. Today, Aldi employs more than 11,500 Australians and partners with more than 1,000 Australian suppliers to deliver our range of high quality products.”
Daunt said as a privately owned business, Aldi has never sought to ‘maximise’ profits at the cost of something or someone else. “Rather, we opt for long term sustainable growth strategies.”
He continued: “Continually maximising profits becomes a zero sum game. If you truly partner with suppliers, you will develop long term prosperity for both parties to the benefit of customers. If you look after your employees they will enjoy turning up to work and they will enjoy looking after customers.
“And, if you treat your customers with honesty and trust, they’ll return you with custom. Maintaining this balance and not swaying from our single-minded customer proposition is what we believe has paved the way for our success.
“In addition to providing employment to tens of thousands of Australians, both directly and indirectly, we are proud to have influenced the entire grocery sector, which has led to price deflation benefiting all Australian shoppers.
“Our estimates suggest that we are saving Australians more than $1.5 billion per year. This is money that is returned to the economy for bills, holidays, education and other vital expenses.
“Our international heritage and global presence is no secret, nor are our intentions in Australia. We want to supply great quality products at affordable prices. We do this by adopting a distinct business model that is different to our competitors.
“We proudly support an Australian first buying policy and have shared our growth with hundreds of Australian manufacturers and thousands of staff who have been direct benefactors of our business growth.
“We are not a business trying to artificially accelerate market share and we are not looking to match the store count of our competitors. We do not cut corners, we do not abuse our market power, we do not mislead our customers. We do not avoid tax payments and we do not squeeze our suppliers. We keep things simple and we focus our attention on what matters most to consumers.”
This story was originally published by Appliance Retailer.
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