Two quotes and a phone call
"A person buying ordinary products in a supermarket is in touch with his deepest emotions" John Kenneth Galbraith I've had that quote from John Kenneth Galbraith in my Ideas list for a long time. I wasn't quite sure what Galbraith meant, and I suspect, being an economist, that he wasn't really thinking the same things as have come to my attention today, from the phone call from a friend. There is so much to say about supermarket labels, and I know I have said lots of them
5 days ago
Subtle and not so subtle advertising - which works best?
"A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself." David Ogilvy On the left an actual ad albeit Coles promoting itself in its Magazine and on the right what looks like the next recipe(s) it is publishing but which in effect is a page advertising several different things - some in-house, some from suppliers. Yes there is a recipe - and yes this is a discreet section of pages in the magazine. But it is also an ad albeit for a number of
Jul 28
A missed opportunity
A couple of days ago, this brochure arrived in our letterbox. Of course I was not excited, but I did think that it might have some information inside that would be useful for a blog. And it did but not in the way I thought it might. I should explain that Woolworths has been undergoing the same renovation process that Coles undertook some time ago, and that I'm sure is happening everywhere, with variable tweaks made according to the physical size of the store and the demogra
Jun 25
Tinned tomatoes & pasta from the supermarket
This is really a bit of a cheat post in that I'm just reporting on some reviews I found of those basics of just about every kitchen - tinned tomatoes and pasta. How did I even come to be looking at them? Well I think I had recently bought a packet of Cucina Matese pasta from Coles and since I had heard from somewhere that this was actually a Coles brand, rather, than an Italian brand I decided to look into it and somehow - first came across this Australian supermarket tinne
May 30
Korean? noodle pancakes
"misused words generate misleading thoughts." Herbert Spencer The April Woolworths Fresh Ideas Magazine popped up yesterday, and so I took one and flicked through it. I confess I've gone off the Woolworths magazine in recent times - it's recipes seem less interesting and less well presented than the Coles equivalent. Not that Coles is a goldmine of recipes I should add. But it is indeed always interesting to browse both magazines for all sorts of reasons other than lookin
Apr 25
Is anyone impervious to advertising?
"A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself." David Ogilvy I noticed that the Coles Magazine now has a new section - Coles Finds . No that's not strictly accurate. It has always - well for some time now - been there, but usually just a page, with a scattering of products. Now there is a whole three or four page section which is presented in the same way as any other of the sections in the magazine - and crucially - near the fr
Jan 21
A supermarket label
A comment from my sister sort of inspired this post. Well I suppose it was barely a comment, just a statement that she hated shopping in...
Sep 7, 2025
Coles' new look
As with almost every topic I choose to write about on this blog, I discovered bits about today's topic that hadn't occurred to me. Even...
Jun 8, 2025
Home brands - the controversy
"don't be too harsh on yourself if you fall for a phantom brand – you might just be getting yourself a decent product for less." Choice...
Feb 26, 2025
Free, $15, $30 or $600?
"really what the supermarket is trying to do is ensure that for every shop you're trying to go there and spend your money rather than...
Nov 9, 2024
Who owns our food, especially milk?
I'm probably not telling you anything you haven't read somewhere or heard on the radio or TV, but there is currently a bit of publicity...
Sep 28, 2024
Do you plan a week's meals?
"Is "planning" this stuff just for people who need another thing to make their life more difficult?" dethwatch/Reddit I have just spent...
Aug 9, 2024
That Choice survey
"When you have limited financial means you can only buy items you need. You have to shop by necessity and this means you may not be...
Jul 13, 2024
Are the supermarkets really the good guys?
"Their profits are our profits." The Parrhesian/AFR At the weekends we get the Australian Financial Review Weekend edition. Being...
Apr 3, 2024
So ordinary
This is a dish found in the last Coles Magazine. It's called One-pan prosciutto chicken with tomatoes and honestly there is nothing...
Mar 10, 2024
The small print of Woolworths
"Australia's go-to for delicious food inspiration" Woolworths Fresh Ideas Magazine Apologies for taking so long getting to Woolworth's...
Jun 17, 2023
The small print - Coles Magazine
“Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make,
but the stories that you tell.” Seth Godin This month I have an actual print...
May 28, 2023
Is Aldi really cheaper than the other two?
Yes - but not as much as you might think - and also ... First thing to say - I know this has been done before. Everything has been done...
Apr 21, 2023
How I learnt to shop for food
"You know you are in love when the two of you can go grocery shopping together." Woody Harrelson An interesting idea but not really what...
Apr 18, 2023
Eat food - rule no.1
"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." Michael Pollan The above quote is probably the most famous modern quote on food around. It...
Feb 10, 2023