How our trade partners can provide us with feedback

Listening and learning from our trade partners ensures we are always improving and delivering better outcomes for our partners, team and customers. We have a number of channels where trade partners can provide feedback. 

• Annual Advantage Mirror survey 

• Voice of Supplier survey

• Independent Reviewer - Annual Survey

• Regular meetings with the Code Arbiter

• Feedback from trade partner events

• Bi-monthly listening sessions

Annual Advantage Mirror Survey

In 2023 Woolworths was ranked Number 1 in the Annual Advantage Mirror Survey, whereby Woolworths Supermarkets trade partners provide feedback on 20 retailers across Australia.  In 2022 Woolworths was equal first and in 2021, Woolworths was ranked second. This has improved from a low of 11th in 2016.

Advantage Group International is an independent research company that researches suppliers’ perceptions of retailers and retailers' perceptions of suppliers and operates in 49 countries across the world. It provides industry-level data that companies participate in and subscribe to and also publishes annual reports with benchmarks showing both supplier and retailer performance against their peers and competitors.

Both retailers and suppliers participate in Advantage research programs to understand levels of engagement and satisfaction with the business relationship and opportunities for improvement. Participation is voluntary however Advantage ensures the market is represented. All participants are assured confidentiality to maximise  the provision of frank feedback with the report measuring 28 competencies that are critical to the business relationship between retailers and suppliers.

Voice of Supplier Survey

In addition to the feedback we receive in the Annual Advantage Mirror Survey, Woolworths seeks suppliers' views and feedback through a regular Voice of Supplier (VOS) survey run by the Advantage Group. The survey was set up to improve the effectiveness of our trade partner partnerships with metrics to measure supplier confidence and sentiment to enable us to review the feedback and put in place actions to address and improve our trade partners' experience.  Trade partners rate Woolworths based on their level of confidence for each of the seven attributes using a seven-point scale.  

Both the Advantage Mirror Survey and VOS survey provide Woolworths Supermarkets with supplier engagement (satisfaction) measures at a total business level and by department benchmarked across the industry as well as verbatim feedback (text box). The Woolworths Supermarkets leadership team and commercial teams review the data on a bi-monthly basis and prepare action plans on how to improve supplier engagement as part of their business process. 

How we support our small trade partners 

Woolworths is proud to offer our customers a wide variety of products that are relevant for the local community when they shop in our stores. Small trade partners play an important role in supporting us to diversify and tailor our range to meet our customers' needs. It is therefore even more important we help to nurture and foster small trade partners to excel in the retail industry and we have invested in a range of initiatives to help small trade partners grow their business including: 

• A dedicated team to work with small trade partners, including support for onboarding and the first few months of doing business with us; 

• Development of a Small Supplier Commercial Report, providing our small trade partners with data on the commercial performance of their products (drawing on feedback from the Independent Reviewer); 

• Shorter payment terms (14 days or less), including actively working to resolve cash flow issues due to growth with us; and 

• Investing over $5.2 million in Seedlab, an independent national small business incubator and accelerator program fully funded by Woolworths which enables small suppliers to become retail-ready and grow.
  

If you are a smaller supplier and interested in becoming a supplier to Woolworths Supermarkets or Metro Stores, please email smallsupplierteam@woolworths.com.au for more information about support available to smaller businesses.

Trade Partner of the Year Awards 

Woolworths Supermarkets holds an annual awards event for trade partners as an opportunity to recognise and thank all the businesses that make it possible for us to provide quality food and everyday needs to our customers. 

Through these awards, we recognise partnerships that deliver growth, excellence in innovation, impacts on people, the planet, and products, new product development, community engagement, and the initiatives that continually help us deliver value for our customers.

Click here to learn more about the winners from the Trade Partner of the Year Awards for 2023

How our trade partners can raise issues

Independent Code Arbiter

Woolworths Supermarkets in Australia is a foundation signatory of the Australian Food and Grocery Code Of Conduct (Code), which has been legally binding on Woolworths since 2015. The Code requires Woolworths to appoint an Independent Code Arbiter to investigate and resolve formal and informal complaints raised by our trade partners. Additionally, the Code requires that the Arbiter produce an annual report and that it be published on our website. Issues can be raised with the Code Arbiter on an informal or formal basis.

• Click here to access the complaints handling procedure to raise Grocery Code complaints

In 2020 Woolworths Supermarkets appointed Helen McKenzie as its Code Arbiter. Ms Helen McKenzie is an accomplished dispute resolution lawyer with professional training and ethical obligations. She is also the President of Anti-discrimination NSW.

Code Arbiter Report

• Click here to access the Woolworths Supermarkets 2023 Code Arbiter Report

Trade Partner Complaints Integrity Policy

Woolworths is committed to ensuring our trade partners can raise complaints and resolve issues with us. We will ensure that our trade partners will not be subject to commercial detriment or adverse consequences as a result of raising a complaint with Woolworths. Woolworths has adopted a Trade Partner Complaints Integrity Policy which addresses any fear of (perceived or actual) retribution. Woolworths Supermarkets’ Managing Director will monitor the subsequent treatment of any trade partner raising a complaint regarding Woolworths. This covers both (a) complaints raised directly with Woolworths and (b) formal and informal complaints raised with Woolworths' Code Arbiter, where the trade partner has provided consent for the Code Arbiter to share their name and details of the complaint with Woolworths.

Trading Issues Resolution

Any issues arising from dealings with the Woolworths Supermarkets commercial buying team can be raised directly with us at:

• issuesresolution@woolworths.com.au

or raised with our Code Arbiter:

• codearbiter@wowgrocerycode.com.au

Speak Up

At Woolworths, we are committed to open and positive relationships with all of our suppliers. 

We recognise, however, that a situation may arise where a supplier feels an important concern can’t be dealt with directly with us, and where the supplier would prefer to use an independent and confidential avenue for raising the concern. We have created the Supplier Speak Up Service for this purpose.

Suppliers (or their workers) can contact Supplier Speak Up online or by the toll-free numbers below. If required, interpreters are available in other languages in addition to those countries listed below.

To raise a supplier concern online, please go to the Speak Up website.

Or via the following toll free phone numbers:

• Australia (Suppliers) - 1800 772 173 (Supplier Speak Up Policy - English)
• New Zealand - 0800 393 76736 (Supplier Speak Up Policy - English)
• Grocery Code of Conduct - 1800 4GROCERY (1800 447 623)

1. The Advantage Group, Advantage Annual Grocery Industry Voice of Supplier Program May 2023