Jon Duffy: Consumer NZ CEO on New World's Smeg kitchenware promotion leaving customers unhappy

New World customers are struggling to get their hands on Smeg kitchenware, available under a 12-week promotion.

They can collect one sticker for every $20 spent.

But the highest-value option, the braiser, is running out - and New World says there won't be any extra deliveries. 

Consumer NZ, CEO Jon Duffy, says New World has specified this is 'while stocks last'.

But he says it's also required by law to have appropriate stocks. 

"With these promotions, this is not their first rodeo, they've done these over the years - so they do know that these promotions are popular."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yes again, yet again, the New World promotion is out
of stock. What a surprise. Shops have started to run
out of the prize top option, which is the smeg Brasier.
They're not going to get any more deliveries. Nobody from
food Stuff's was available to speak with us today. Once again,
what a surprise. Consumer. New Zealand CEO John Duffy is
with me.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hello, John, Hi here, there are you going?

Speaker 1 (00:22):
I'm well? But this is like groundhold day, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Well? It is yes, every time a New World run
some of these promotions. Yes, we do get complaints that
that stock has run out. They do put up you know,
in their advertise and they say well stocked fast. But yeah,
often the stocks don't you know, the level of stocks
don't meet people's expectations and they're run out.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
HOLPN did this launch? It feels to me like this launched?
What like, was it four weeks ago?

Speaker 2 (00:52):
Or am I?

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Am I not being fair here?

Speaker 2 (00:55):
No, it feels about four weeks ago.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
So they want to tell me that they're running out
of the thing that everybody wants. It's about halfway through
that byes, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
Well? Yeah, Under the Fit Training Act, they do need
to make sure even when they say well stocks last,
they need to have reasonable stocks to meet demand. And
I guess the thing is with these promotions. This is
not their first rodeo. They've done these over the years,
so they do know that these promotions are popular. I

(01:26):
can't make any comment on whether their stock levels are
appropriate because they don't know the level of demand. But yeah,
they need to buy law make sure that their stocks
are appropriate.

Speaker 1 (01:35):
Okay, So should I mean, look, just for goodwill? I
know that they can't. I understand the logistics of the thing,
right they can't possibly actually fully imagine how many people engage,
how many people would want to have this particular thing.
But surely the smart thing to do for good would
be to say, if you have a stick of full
of the things and you want to bring it in
and we'll go and order you another one. Shouldn't they
do that? Because they can?

Speaker 2 (01:56):
Right? Well, I'm not sure or if they can. It
may depend on the deal that they've got with Smeg,
who's the manufacturer here. It could be that this is
you know, end of line stock or you know, whatever
the deal is that they've got so that they can
offer them on you know, effectively on special through the promotion.
So it may be that they can't get any more

(02:18):
that there's a closed window, But I don't know that
really is for food stuff to say, did those of
you right?

Speaker 1 (02:24):
I know in the past people have complained to the
Commus Commission about similar things. Do they ever go anywhere?

Speaker 2 (02:31):
Well, my understanding is that there was a promotion on
knives a couple of years ago or even last year,
and I think the knife block ran out earlier than.

Speaker 1 (02:41):
People That was as well, that's the one people wanted.

Speaker 2 (02:46):
Well, it kind of was because you've got to the end,
you collected all the knives and you're like, well where
am I going to put these things? Let's go get
the knife block with there. I don't know what their
actual number was. There was only five available nationwide and
they ran out pretty quickly. It wasn't that please don't
sue me food stuffs, but cares if they.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
Do, then I want to talk about it. So whatever
you can say, whatever you want, John right now.

Speaker 2 (03:07):
Well, the issue really was that the knifeblocks ran out
quicker than people anticipated, and my understanding was there were
complaints to the Comics Commission, whether it was specifically on
that issue or not. I'm not sure, but no doubt
the Commics Comission had a look at it and probably
repeated to food Stuff's what I've just said that, hey,
you need to make sure you've got reasonable stocks, and
before you advertised these promotions, and yet here.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
We are again, John, Thanks so much. John Duffy, Consumer
New Zealand CEO. The promotion started on the ninth of June,
you idiot, thank you. That harsh, But we're in the
mode of being harsh at the moment, so I'll take it.
Ninth of June's that's two months, another month ish to go,
so the two thirds of the way through and they've
run out. I still don't think that I still don't
think that's on.

Speaker 2 (03:49):
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