Kit Brands: Good / Bad Brands

[mikey]

That reasoning may have a kernel of truth to it. But it only holds if there is only one supermarket chain. As far as I know there are at least two big chains and a group of independents which are competing with one another. Unless you are suggesting there is some type of cartel and price fixing arrangement in place.

Last year I was at a guest lecture by someone from the ACCC. He had a few things to say about Coles Vs Safeway/Woolorths: (no direct quotes, just what I remember)

- They each have a much greater share of the Australian market than Wal-Mart has in the US

- If they chose to, they have the market power to collude and force others out of business, then make huge profits.

- EXEPT, Australian competition laws won't let them, and they seem hell bent on competing with each other.

Australia is one of the few if not the only country to have the market virtually controlled by two companies. it's not just the supermarkets, don't forget they own approximately 85% of the liquor outlets as well.

As for the for the competition laws , Pfft! They don't mean a thing with our current government (oops sorry don't mean to talk politics).

As for stocking HB stuff, my supermarket's got a fair range of kits, but I'd never go there. More often than not I'll drive or take the train to Grain and Grape. Supermarkets will never be able to compete profitably with homebrew shops on anything other than price. Price alone (within reason) will not stop people like me travelling to the other side of Melbourne for some good advice.

No grains at my supermarket either.

I buy my kits and caps at the supermarket when they are cheap. Eveything else I buy at the HBS either because they are cheaper (malt) or I can't get them anywhere else (hops/ grains).

[Boonie]

If I buy from a company such as Sanitarium, not only does the money go off-shore, but because they are owned by the Mormons, it contributes no tax inside this country.

Actually Sanitarium is owned by the seventh day adventists, but you're right about not paying taxes as the profits are channeled into the church, a non-profit organisation. Don't know much about these characters but I think they do a lot of charity work and they're not the most extreme of the crackpot religions out there.

Yeah the Seventh Day Adventurers do own it.

In my local town we had 2 Liquor shops where you had competition for the Alcohol sales. Guess what, Coles bought out the other store

We need a government with some balls, sorry politics again

[mobydick]

I look at it like this. If you want your HBS to survive, you have to support it. With some lines it will be more expensive than the supermarket. But if you want your HBS to survive, they need turnover. I think of it as investing in both the future of the HBS and my brewing. Just my view. Used to be a small business operator.

[goatsby]

Well my nearest homebrew shop is 200kms away

Coopers Lager is my bread and butter

I get this at my IGA grocer Maxi foods when it is on special $8.99

Safeway has it on special at 9.39 and Coles at 8.79 Safeway is generally the price leader I try to spend the least possible amount of money at safeway and coles and only on Australian made goods on special.

When I get to the Home brew Shop in Ballarat

I like
The Coopers Heritage Range
Morgans Stockmans Draught

I would prefer shopping at a local HB shop last time I was there he had Coopers Sparkling Ale Caps for $4.50 each.

I think if we had a poll of your favorite reputable companies and organisations your local home brew shop would be right up there.

In fact I might do one for the general discussion!

[goatsby]

It's hard to find a good butcher.

Personally I'd rate Woolies sausages a long way down my list. Just fat and lecithin in a condom.

Yep Woolies and Colers sausages are way down on the list

I always try local butchers in my travels some have delicaies for local tastes

The dimboola biutcher sells Redfin fillets
The Warrackanabeal Butcher has mock chicken legs ETC

My Favorite is Woodys sausages in Horsham
SWEET AND SOUR SAUSAGES

Recipe
Prepare a pckt chicken noodle soup with 3 cups of water
Brown 1lb Woodys Herb and Garlic Sausages
and cut them into chunks, Combine half cup vinegar quarter cup suguar
add half a cup of drained pinapple pieces
1 Chopped capisicum with the soup and sausages
Simmer 5mins, addd 1 tablespoon cornflour mixed with quarter cup pineapple juice

Stir till thickened and add 1 dessertspoon soy sauce

[Rysa]

I look at it like this. If you want your HBS to survive, you have to support it. With some lines it will be more expensive than the supermarket. But if you want your HBS to survive, they need turnover. I think of it as investing in both the future of the HBS and my brewing. Just my view. Used to be a small business operator.

For sure, couldn't agree more.
If fortunate to have a local, use it to keep it going.
The corner milkbars are dissappearing would hate for the same thing to happen to HBS's.
We've only got the one small one here so if it goes then there is nothing close by.

[Boonie]

My local HBS give me a small discount off anything I buy there.

At first only his wife was giving me a discount, but I think that he may realise that giving me the % off gets me back more......and it does

I have made it a rule of mine now that I buy the "specials" at Coles or Woolies when they are $9....but will always get some Morgans or other brand and liquid malt once a fortnight (payday).

It keeps them happy, in business and it keeps my wife happy. Which is most important Happy wife, happy life

They have recently purchased the HBS and are lovely people.
Quick plug , they were called Beer n Gear at Charlestown and have recently changed the name to Home Brew Inn (Cool name).

Go on in and see them and tell 'em the Bank Manager sent you

Cheers

Boonie

[Rysa]

Ha, nice one Boonie.
I get a free tin every 6th one i get from my local and so i found out the last time i went, every 7th you get a kilo of dex!!
Have been doing the same, specials at Coles and Big W and special tins from the HBS.

[gavind]

i don't know about your local supermarkets, but the coles near me - roselands, their home brew section has has probably decreased is size well over half in the last few months... all they have now is the coopers original range and they have all the coopers brew enhancers / malts etc. I don't know if they just sell out, but they rarely seem to have the coopers international series anymore.

I normally but the Light Dry Malt and BE2 at coles when we get the groceries - that way when i go to the home brew shop, it doesn't look to the wife like im spending as much.

Getting back to the original question, i'm pretty big on all the morgans kits - they haven't let me down.

But support your local homebrew shop... if for no other reason, i dont think i've ever been into one and not been offered at least one free beer.

[ryan]

ESB range 1.7kg. cans $7.50 recently at hbs here.

[Iron-Haggis]

85% of bottleshops are run by two big companies and a similar percent of products in them are owned by two different big companies.

Indepedant bottle shops are a dying breed. Coles and Woolies have the money and power to be able to buy independants licenses and to stop people getting licenses for an independant bottle shop. One of the big companies actually used their money to stop an independant from moving their business across the street into a bigger shop, even though this shop was about 3km away.

[Chris]

SDA are fine. I used to live near their headquarters on Sydney's north shore, and it was great- no mormons door-knocking.

And Aldi is good. It may be big internationally, but it's good to see more competition in the market.

And chris., for someone who has a go at anyone who makes short posts, I don't think "" is a great contribution to any conversation

[r.magnay]

At the risk of raising the political ire of some, I would like to state that the blokes who are guts aching about our present government are either too young to remember or just whinging for the sake of it, If you can remember the mess left by the Hawke / Keating government, you certainly wouldn't be complaining now!

My little gripe for the morning, now we seem to have digressed a bit from the subject of good and bad kit brands. I have a mate from down south staying with me at the moment who is also a kit brewer, I asked him what he brews mostly and he said he uses Woolies brand draught and Coopers brew enhancer, he loves it! Now though it doesn't sound all that good to me I guess it is a bit hard to judge without trying it, it does bring me back to a point I have made before relating to good / bad beer though, good to one is bad to another, so it is a bit hard for me to tell you what is good or bad and vice versa!

[chris.]

And chris., for someone who has a go at anyone who makes short posts, I don't think "" is a great contribution to any conversation

Yeah that's great stuff.

[chris.]

And Aldi is good. It may be big internationally, but it's good to see more competition in the market.

Yeah lets have 3 instead of 2. That will make things so much better.

This thread is so funny

[pacman]

Operated a general store for a couple of years in the 70's. Fortunately, for me, at any rate, a buyer came out of the blue, and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Good for me, because prices for general stores peaked at about that time, before starting to spiral downwards.

But even back then, I had quickly become aware that I and fellow general store operators throughout the country were, in effect, subsidising the operations of the "majors". The majors were selling, and they still do, many promoted lines cheaper than the general stores could buy wholesale!

There is plenty of anecdotal evidence of the "dirty tricks" employed by the majors, dating back to the 60's and beyond. Why isn't anything done? The Government has to keep the conumers happy. Unhappy consumers spell trouble. BIG TROUBLE!!!

Small business operators survive by finding niche markets. Simply impossible for them to compete with the big end of town, except in one area. Service! Provide the goods or services that the majors find, for them, is not worth the effort.

HBS stock the slower moving, specialised lines that, by this very description, are unattractive to the majors. They also stock some of the more popular lines, even though they pay wholesale prices that are higher than the majors' retail prices. Is this making sense?

Like most of us, I have to make day to day decisions on how I spend my money. Like most of us, I have a limited (sometimes, very limited) supply of money.

As a businessman, I adopt the same approach as my customers. They only use my upmarket tranport services (our motto reads "ON TIME & UNDAMAGED") when they need those services. If I decide I need a Coopers can that is available at the supermarket, I put it in the trolley I am wheeling around for SWMBO! Dammit, she is spending the money that I generated!

If I need HB material not available at supermarket, I go to HBS. If, perchance, I forgot Coopers can at supermarket, then HBS benefit from my oversight! And so it goes.

Is there an answer to all of this? Probably not!

[Rysa]

Nothing to do with K&S at all pac?

[pacman]

Gees Rysa, sorry!

Some posts on this thread have been discussing sausages!

[Rysa]

It's not summer!!!

Nah, the inlaw works for K&S.
Wondering if the trucking were close.

[pacman]

OK. K&S!

Leave them for dead! We specialise in Time Critical! Seriously!