Markets are back at their usual shopping frenetic pace this Christmas as Australian food and drink makers are stocking up for a bumper winter market.
Key points:Food markets have been bustling with festive shoppers for the past few yearsFoodies can buy from the likes of Australian supermarket chain Aldi, Chinese online marketplace Zomato and supermarket chains Trader Joe’s and Food Express.
They can also visit a range of craft breweries and craft markets in the city.
More than 60 Australian food stores have opened for the festive season in the past year, according to the Australian Association of Food and Beverage Exporters (AFABE).
And it’s not just the food industry that’s hoping for a good winter market this Christmas.
Some food-focused retailers are also opening up in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
The retail giant Kmart is opening up its Australian branch this weekend, with stores across the state already stocking up on Christmas essentials.
“Kmart has an extensive range of seasonal products and offers an exciting shopping experience for Australian shoppers,” said a spokesperson for the retailer.
“As always, our focus is on providing Australians with a fun and festive shopping experience, with the best of what we have to offer, and the best prices in the industry.”
While some of the biggest Australian retailers are already opening up their Australian branches, it’s unlikely to be the last time they do so in 2017.
Kmart is one of the major retail chains in Australia that are opening up branches in the coming weeks and months, with more than 50 in the market already stocked up.
In the first half of 2017, more than 4,500 Kmart stores opened their doors, with shoppers across Australia having been eager to stock up.
And while Kmart may be gearing up to open a new branch in the Adelaide CBD in the near future, the chain has yet to officially confirm the locations it will open in.
“We’ve been able to build up a strong store network across Adelaide, and we expect to open new stores across Adelaide in the second half of the year,” said the spokesperson.KMart Australia has opened more than 10,000 stores in Australia since opening its doors in 1996.
And, despite being one of Australia’s largest retailers, Kmart has been criticised by some consumers and business owners for its high prices and low margins.KMV and its parent company, the Melbourne-based multinational Kmart, were forced to pay more than $100 million in compensation in the first quarter of 2017.
The consumer group Choice launched a class action against the supermarket giant in January 2018, claiming that it’s low prices and a “shocking lack of customer service” are to blame for poor sales in its stores.
In March 2018, a class of more than 200,000 customers also took their complaints to the Victorian Government.
Katherine Murphy from Choice claimed that the retailer’s “price-fixing” tactics were the reason why the group’s customers were dropping their membership to the supermarket chain.
“I think it’s really unfortunate that the way that they’re trying to sell their products is really low, it doesn’t have the impact they think it does,” she said.
“The way they do it, they’re using a lot of tactics that I think are really unfair.”