Woolworths Limited
Type	Public (ASX:WOW)
Founded	1924
Headquarters	Bella Vista, New South Wales,  Australia
Area served	Australia  New Zealand Template:HGK
Key people	James Strong, Chairman Michael Luscombe, CEO
Industry	Retail
Revenue	▲ A$44 billion (2007)
Profit	▲ A$4. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Bella Vista is an affluent north-western Suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Michael Luscombe is an Australian businessman He is currently CEO and Managing Director of Woolworths Limited, the largest retail company in Australia A chief executive officer ( CEO) or chief executive is typically the highest-ranking corporate officer ( executive) or administrator For other uses of this term see Industry (disambiguation An industry (from Latin industrius, "diligent industrious" In business revenue or revenues is Income that a company receives from its normal business activities usually from the sale of goods and services The Australian dollar ( sign: $; code: AUD) is the Currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Net income is equal to the Income that a firm has after subtracting costs and Expenses from the total Revenue. The Australian dollar ( sign: $; code: AUD) is the Currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas 6 billion (2007)
Employees	175,000
Divisions	Woolworths, Safeway, Food For Less, Flemings, Caltex Woolworths/Safeway, Woolworths/Safeway Liquor, BWS, Dan Murphy's, Big W, Dick Smith Electronics, Dick Smith PowerHouse, Tandy
Website	www.woolworthslimited.com.au

Woolworths Limited is a major Australian company with extensive retail interest throughout Australia and New Zealand. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. A division of a business entity is a portion of that business that operates under a different name Safeway is the trading name used by Woolworths Limited until 2008 for its supermarkets in Victoria Australia. Flemings is a chain of Supermarkets in Sydney, Australia. The chain is owned by Woolworths Limited and only four supermarkets still trade under BWS (Beer Wine Spirits is an Australian retail chain of Liquor stores owned by Woolworths Limited. Dan Murphy's is an Australian big box liquor supermarket chain owned by Woolworths Limited, who also owns BWS, another liquor chain Big W is the second-largest chain of discount department stores in Australia with over 140 stores Dick Smith Electronics is an Australasian Electronics retailer founded in 1968 by Dick Smith. Tandy is an electronics retailer in Australia owned by Woolworths Limited. A website (alternatively web site or Web site, a back-construction from the Proper noun World Wide Web) is a collection of Web pages For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island It is the largest:

• retail company in Australia and New Zealand by market capitalisation and sales
• food retailer in Australia^[1] and one of the two largest in New Zealand^[2]
• takeaway liquor retailer in Australia^[3]
• hotel and poker machine operator in Australia^[3]

Australian brands

• 25th largest retailer in the world ^[4]

Supermarkets

• Woolworths – The company's premier supermarket chain, which operates in every Australian state and territory except Victoria. Market capitalization/capitalisation (aka market cap, mkt cap or capitalized/capitalised value) is a measurement of Corporate or Economic The supermarkets are often colloquially known as "Woolies" and have used the slogan 'The Fresh Food People' since 1987.
• Safeway – The company's Victorian supermarkets, which closely resemble the Woolworths stores in the rest of the nation. Safeway is the trading name used by Woolworths Limited until 2008 for its supermarkets in Victoria Australia.
• Food For Less – Discount supermarket chain located in Queensland and New South Wales
• Flemings – Group of four supermarkets located in Sydney and the Central Coast (the remnants of a chain purchased in the 1960s). Food For Less is an Australian discount supermarket chain owned by Woolworths Limited. Flemings is a chain of Supermarkets in Sydney, Australia. The chain is owned by Woolworths Limited and only four supermarkets still trade under
• Thomas Dux Grocer - Upmarket supermarket / deli chain to be launched during 2008

Liquor

• Woolworths Liquor – Liquor stores which are either attached or located within Woolworths supermarkets. Thomas Dux is the trading name for boutique grocery stores launched by Woolworths in 2008 They are not located in Qld, due to Qld law banning liquor sales at supermarkets. These stores were formerly known as "Mac's Liquor".
• Safeway Liquor – Liquor stores which are either attached or located within Safeway supermarkets.
• BWS – (Beer Wine Spirits) Liquor stores located away from the company's supermarkets. BWS (Beer Wine Spirits is an Australian retail chain of Liquor stores owned by Woolworths Limited.
• Dan Murphy's – Large liquor barns often referred to as Liquor Supermarkets. Dan Murphy's is an Australian big box liquor supermarket chain owned by Woolworths Limited, who also owns BWS, another liquor chain Dan Murphy's is one of the company's best growth performers, with plans for up to 100 stores (from the current 55) to exist within the next 2-3 years.
• ALH Group – Hotel and Poker Machine operator, which is 75% owned by Woolworths Limited.

Petrol

• Caltex Woolworths/Safeway – Petrol stations located both free standing and adjacent to Woolworths and Safeway supermarkets

General merchandise

• Big W – Discount Department Store chain, which sell a wide range of general merchandise. Caltex Woolworths is a chain of petrol stores in Australia, owned by Caltex Australia and Woolworths Limited in a 5050 joint venture Big W is the second-largest chain of discount department stores in Australia with over 140 stores BIG W represents about 8% of group sales and reputedly has aggressive expansion plans compared with competitors Kmart and Target. Kmart Australia is a discount department store chain that operates in Australia (and New Zealand trading as Kmart New Zealand Target Australia Pty Ltd is an Australian department store chain owned by Wesfarmers (formerly by Coles Group)

Consumer electronics

• Dick Smith Electronics – Sell a wide range of consumer goods such as computer products, as well as hobby electronic products. Dick Smith Electronics is an Australasian Electronics retailer founded in 1968 by Dick Smith.
• Dick Smith Powerhouse – Larger Dick Smith stores with a focus on consumer entertainment products; similar to the electrical and computer departments of Harvey Norman. Harvey Norman is a large Australian-based retailer of electrical computer furniture entertainment and bedding goods
• Tandy – Similar to Dick Smith Electronics stores, but smaller and lacking the hobbyist components. Tandy is an electronics retailer in Australia owned by Woolworths Limited.
• Croma/Tata Group Venture – In 2006 Woolworths and the Tata Group of India announced an electronics retailing venture on the subcontinent. The Tata Group ( Hindi: टाटा समूह is a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Due to the legal framework, foreign companies are prevented from operating retail businesses in India. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Due to this, Woolworths will act as a wholesaler to the Tata Group. The Tata Group ( Hindi: टाटा समूह is a multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India. The stores are based on the Dick Smith Powerhouse format.

Former chains and brands

• Woolworths Food Fair – The name given to the company's growing food-retailing interests in the 1960s to differentiate them from the variety-based stores. This name was absorbed when the decision was made to use the original Woolworths name for the company's food stores and supermarkets instead of its variety stores.
• Woolworths Variety – The name given to the company's traditional variety stores to differentiate them from the company's food-retailing interests, when the decision was made to use the original Woolworths name for the company's food stores and supermarkets instead of its variety stores. These variety stores were progressively divested as Woolworths focused on food retailing and developed large-scale discount department stores.
• Woolworths Family Centre – Woolworths opened its first hypermarket at Booval near Ipswich, Queensland in November, 1969 under the Big W name. In Commerce, a hypermarket is a superstore which combines a Supermarket and a Department store. Booval is a suburb of Ipswich, Queensland, Australia. The origin of the suburb name is from the Kabi Aboriginal dialect meaning frilled Ipswich is a city and Local Government Area situated on the Bremer River in South East Queensland, Australia. Big W is the second-largest chain of discount department stores in Australia with over 140 stores A second hypermarket was opened in 1970 in Indooroopilly, Brisbane, under the Woolworths Family Centre name. Indooroopilly (ˌɪndrʊˈpɪli is a suburb of Brisbane, Australia which is located 7 km west of the Brisbane central business district. Brisbane ( is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland The early popularity of these stores led to Woolworths establishing hypermarkets around Australia using the Woolworths Family Centre name. However the concept failed to perform, and the hypermarkets were re-established as separated Woolworths supermarkets and Big W discount department stores in the late 1970s to early 1980s. Big W is the second-largest chain of discount department stores in Australia with over 140 stores
• Crazy Prices – A variety store chain that sold discounted merchandise. These stores were sold to (and formed part of) rival Go-Lo in 2001, although the last store with Crazy Prices branding didn't close until 2005 in Port Macquarie. Go-Lo is a chain of Australian discount variety stores with hundreds of stores throughout Australia. Port Macquarie is a large town on the mid- North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, located about 390 km north of Sydney, and 570km south of Brisbane Its slogan was "The Bargains are Better".
• Rockmans – Women's clothing retailer acquired by the group in 1960 and was a major operating division until its sale in 2000.
• Woolworths Plus Petrol – The original name of the petrol sites owned by Woolworths before the joint venture with Caltex. Caltex is a Petroleum brand name of Chevron Corporation used in more than 60 countries in the Asia-Pacific region the Middle East, and southern
• Woolworths Metro – Inner-urban convenience stores located in the key metropolitan areas of Sydney and Brisbane selling a range of pre-prepared meals for the 'time poor' customer. Woolworths Metro was also the name of Woolworths' flagship five-storey store at Town Hall in Sydney until 2003 when it reverted back to the Woolworths supermarket brand.

• Roelf Vos and Purity supermarkets - Two Tasmanian supermarkets located in the north and south respectively. Bought out by Woolworths in the early nineties however they continued to trade under these names for some time (with the sub-heading of 'The Fresh Food People' still added) Until eventually dropping the names in early 2000.

New Zealand brands

Progressive Enterprises:

• Woolworths – full-line Supermarkets
• Foodtown – full-line Supermarkets
• Countdown – discount supermarkets
• Woolworths @ Gull – petrol and convenience stores

Franchised:

• Supervalue – convenience supermarkets
• Fresh Choice – full-line supermarkets

DSE NZ:

• Dick Smith Electronics – sell a wide range of hobby electronic products and consumer goods such as computer products. Woolworths is an Auckland -based supermarket chain and a unit of Woolworths Limited. This article is about the New Zealand supermarket not the Foodtown (USA supermarket cooperative or the Houston Texas store. Countdown is a New Zealand discount supermarket chain owned by Progressive Enterprises. Woolworths @ Gull commenced in 2001 as a partnership between Gull Petroleum and Woolworths Supermarkets (New Zealand They operate under two formats Micro convenience style Supervalue is a convenience Supermarket in New Zealand located throughout the North Island and South Island. Fresh Choice is a chain of Buffet -style restaurants located in California, Washington, and Texas under the names Fresh Choice Dick Smith Electronics is an Australasian Electronics retailer founded in 1968 by Dick Smith.
• Dick Smith Powerhouse – Large stores with a focus on consumer entertainment products.

History

Woolworths in the Sydney CBD

Woolworths opened its first store, the Woolworths Stupendous Bargain Basement, in the old Imperial Arcade in Pitt Street, Sydney, on 5 December 1924. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Its nominal capital was just £25,000 and although 15,000 shares were offered to the public, only 11,707 shares were subscribed for by 29 people, including the five founders – Percy Christmas, Stanley Chatterton, Scott Waine, George Creed and Ernest Williams. The name on the draft prospectus drawn up by Cecil Scott Waine was "Wallworths Bazaar" – a play on the F.W. Woolworth name (the owner of the Woolworth's chain in the United States and United Kingdom). The F W Woolworth Company (often referred to as Woolworth's) was a retail company that was one of the original American five-and-dime stores However, according to Ernest Robert Williams, Percy Christmas dared him to register the name Woolworths instead, which he succeeded in doing after finding out the name was available for use in New South Wales. Accordingly, Woolworths Ltd in Australia has no connection with the F.W. Woolworth Company in the United States. The F W Woolworth Company (often referred to as Woolworth's) was a retail company that was one of the original American five-and-dime stores

The new Woolworths store was innovative; it was the first variety store in the world to use cash registers that print receipts for customers.

Christmas set up a New Zealand general merchandise operation in Wellington in 1929. Year 1929 ( MCMXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Woolworths New Zealand opened its first food store in Auckland in 1956, and supermarkets in 1971. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Woolworths New Zealand was sold to the company that is now Lion Nathan in 1979, then sold to Dairy Farm International in 1990, now owned by Progressive Enterprises, a subsidiary of Foodland Associated Limited of Australia. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) Progressive Enterprises Limited is an Australian owned company operating in New Zealand, and a subsidiary of the Australian retail group Woolworths Limited In 2005 Woolworths Limited and Metcash Holdings (IGA) agreed to purchase a demerged Foodland, and Progressive Enterprises and 23 of Foodland's Action supermarkets came under Woolworths' ownership. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Progressive Enterprises Limited is an Australian owned company operating in New Zealand, and a subsidiary of the Australian retail group Woolworths Limited Action (formerly Action Food Barns and Action Supermarkets) is a defunct Australian Supermarket chain This acquisition brought total store numbers in Australia to near 750.

During the late 1920s the company grew, with a second store in Sydney and stores in Brisbane and Perth. Brisbane ( is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It grew further in the 1930s, despite the depression, until by the end of 1933 it had 23 stores. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1933 the first store in Melbourne was opened. Melbourne ( is the second most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 3 On April 1, 1936 the company bought eight stores from Edments Ltd and opened its first store in Adelaide. Events 527 - Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a

World War II slowed the growth of Woolworths and the Australian and United States military used Woolworths' warehouses in Sydney for storage. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including After the war expansion was rapid and in 1955 Woolworths opened its 200th store, in the Civic Centre in Canberra (since closed). Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) Canberra ( is the capital city of Australia With a population of over 340000 it is Australia's largest inland City. At this point Woolworths was still mainly a variety chain and had not moved into the food sector that uses the "Woolworths" brand today. This move began in 1955 when it opened its first supermarket at Beverly Hills, south-west of Sydney. Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) Beverly Hills is a Suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The company bought the Rockmans chain of women's clothing stores in 1960. Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

In the 1970s, the company started to open Big W discount department stores and the slow removal of many variety products from the supermarket and variety stores began. This process finished in 1989 when the last of the Woolworths Variety stores was closed (except the one in Rundle Mall) and the "Family Centres" were split into separate Big W and Woolworths supermarket stores. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Rundle Mall is the main Shopping centre in Adelaide, South Australia. Woolworths acquired the Dick Smith Electronics consumer electronics chain in 1981 and expanded the consumer electronics arm of its business with the purchase of the Tandy chain in Australia from InterTan Inc in 2001. Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 The company sold the Rockmans chain in 2000. 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar.

In 1985 the acquisition of the 126 Safeway stores in eastern Australia made Woolworths the largest food retailer in Australia. Safeway stores were in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland and included Food Barns in Queensland and northern New South Wales. The stores were acquired following an agreement whereby Safeway acquired a 19. Safeway Inc ( a Fortune 500 company is North America's third largest Supermarket chain with as of December 29 2007 1743 stores located throughout the 99% interest in Woolworths Limited. Woolworths and Safeway supermarkets in Victoria traded under the Safeway brand, and Safeway's Food Barns in Queensland and New South Wales became part of Woolworths.

Around this time the supermarket chain had run eight small supermarket chains including the Queensland-based Food For Less and the Sydney-based Flemings, both of which survive. Food For Less is an Australian discount supermarket chain owned by Woolworths Limited.

In 1989 the company was acquired by Industrial Equity Limited (IEL) and was a wholly-owned subsidiary until 1993, when it was floated in the biggest share sale (at that time) in Australia's history. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar)

In 1996 Woolworths entered the petrol market, initially with wholly-owned "Plus Petrol" outlets located in shopping centre parking lots. In 2004, as part of a loyalty program aimed at attracting customers to supermarkets through the lure of four cent a litre discounts, Woolworths entered into an agreement with Caltex to co-brand some Caltex outlets as Caltex Woolworths. Caltex Woolworths is a chain of petrol stores in Australia, owned by Caltex Australia and Woolworths Limited in a 5050 joint venture These joint venture outlets are supplied with fuel by Caltex and with groceries by Woolworths, and accept Woolworths cards and discount dockets.

In 1999, Woolworths began a joint venture with the Commonwealth Bank called Woolworths Ezy Banking. This venture was scaled back in 2006, but this has not stopped the company from pursuing other financial services initiatives - in 2005 the company reached an agreement with the ANZ Banking Group to install ATMs at Woolworths locations. Additionally, by 2008 it had invested in financial services infrastructure and expertise, building a team of 50 staff for this purpose. ^[5]

In 1997 Woolworths opened its first Metro convenience store, in Sydney, converting their premier variety store for 32 years to this format with the lower ground floor specialising in a large range of ‘prepared meals’ to cater for the increasing numbers of city dwellers. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar Sydney (ˈsɪdniː is the most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 4 Subsequent stores opened in Coogee, Boronia Park and West Pennant Hills in Sydney and Ascot in Brisbane. Boronia Park is a waterfront parkland and Nature reserve wholly within the suburb of Hunters Hill and the Municipality of Hunter's Hill, New South West Pennant Hills is a suburb located in the Hills District region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Ascot, is a predominantly affluent residential suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, characterised by large Queenslander homes Brisbane ( is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland Stores that have since been sold or re-branded are Newtown, Waterloo and its Sydney city store (all in Sydney). Newtown may refer to Places Australia Newtown New South Wales Newtown Queensland Newtown Queensland Waterloo is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

With growth opportunities in other sectors becoming limited, Woolworths started to expand into liquor businesses. A peculiarity of the licencing laws means that retail outlets in Queensland can be operated only by a hotelier, which each pub entitling the operator to three retail liquor outlets within a certain distance. Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern corner of the mainland continent This led both Woolworths and its competitors to look at the hotel industry as a future area of expansion.

Woolworths formed a joint venture, called Bruandwo, with Bruce Mathieson, an experienced pub operator, and this venture purchased hotelier Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group in 2005. In late 2005 the ALH Group acquired the Taverner Hotel Group and the Bruce Mathieson Group further cementing its position as Australia's premier liquor retailer, with a current portfolio of 250 hotels.

The hotel business, run by the ALH Group, is 25% owned by Bruce Mathieson and 75% owned by Woolworths Ltd.

Statistics provided during the acquisition of the Taverner group showed that over one third of sales are made up of gaming/poker machine takings. ^[6] The number of poker machines owned by Woolworths and Bruce Mathieson after ALH acquisitions was 10,722. ^[7]

In 2006 the company had three major events:

• in June it opened a buying office in Hong Kong to cut out the intermediary in sourcing foreign-produced items;
• it announced a venture with the Tata Group in India to introduce Dick Smiths Electronics stores to that country;
• in September it announced that it had taken a 10% strategic stake in the The Warehouse Group in New Zealand. The Warehouse, ( founded by Stephen Tindall in 1982 is the largest Department store Retailer operating in New Zealand.

In 2006, Woolworths rolled out new Retalix point of sale systems running on IBM POS hardware with LCD touchscreens throughout all its stores. Point of sale or point of service ( POS or PoS) can mean a retail shop, a checkout counter in a shop or the location where a transaction International Business Machines Corporation abbreviated IBM and nicknamed "Big Blue", is a multinational Computer Technology ^[8]

In August 2007 Woolworths announced that it was planning to launch a general purpose credit card in 2008. ^[9] It is expected to offer credit cardholders reward vouchers redeemable through its store network. ^[5] HSBC was subsequently named as its credit card partner. HSBC Holdings plc ( (,,,) is a Public limited company incorporated in England and Wales, headquartered in London. ^[10]

References

External links

• Woolworths Limited