Woolworths CEO denies serving up ‘wokeness in aisle three’ after Australia Day controversy

Woolworths’ chief executive has denied accusations it is serving up “wokeness in aisle three” after the supermarket chain made a decision not to stock Australia Day merchandise in its stores.

Bradford Banducci, who appeared on both Channel Seven’s Sunrise program and Nine’s Today on Wednesday morning, said the decision was commercial, not a political statement, but said “we could have done a better job” in explaining the move.

Sales of Australia Day merchandise “has actually been reducing for a number of years”, he told Sunrise on Wednesday morning. “It is really specific items.

“That space in our store has been shrinking.”

On Channel Nine’s Today program, Banducci said: “Let’s be honest here, to all the people watching this … how much do you have in your cupboard from last year?”

When the day is over “it goes into landfill or, even worse, into waterways”.

Stock is ordered 10 to 12 months in advance, so the decision to not stock merchandise is the consequence of an ongoing process involving customer feedback, he told Sunrise.

On Today, Banducci disagreed with host Karl Stefanovic’s suggestion that Woolworths had served up “wokeness in aisle three”.

“I would completely disagree on that call,” Banducci said. “We’ve served up a focus on what we think we need to do better and the most meaningful way we can contribute to our customers.”

Woolworths’ announcement in early January prompted criticism from media and Coalition politicians, with the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, calling for a boycott of the retailer and saying the decision was “against the national interest”.

Since then two stores have been vandalised with pro-Australia Day graffiti and, according to Banducci, there had been a 50% increase in the number of acts of rudeness or aggression to workers.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, warned against Dutton’s boycott, pointing to the impact it might have on its 200,000 employees.

Asked if he was anti-Australia Day on Today, Banducci said “Australia Day means different things to everyone” but confirmed Woolworths stores would be decorated in green and gold.

“We want everyone to make their choice of how they want to mark Australia Day,” he said.

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“We are going to be celebrating the best of Australian food for this long weekend, because no matter how you think about the day, what we will bring is everyone together sitting down and having a great Australian meal.”

The CEO told Today that Woolworths “could have clearly done a better job of explaining our decision”.

“That is why I’m here, because I think we could have done a better job,” Banducci said. “The weight for myself is the impact that this is having on our team. They are proud, hardworking Australians.”

Banducci told Sunrise he was worried about people who “don’t fully understand our message”.

“There is a risk of them taking out frustrations in store with hardworking employees … who will be working on the long weekend.

“I have read incident reports of unfortunate incidents in our stores … People being rude and threatening our team.

“If nothing else comes out from this headline, the clear message is: treat our team with the respect they deserve.”

– with Australian Associated Press