The countdown to Christmas has begun and Woolworths Group is revealing the number of “great” value products across Woolworths Supermarkets and BIG W that Aussies will be “loving” this year from 1.5 million kilos of pork roasts, through to 840,000 LEGO packs.
Woolworths Group has included the key highlights and quotes from Woolworths, BIG W and Everyday Rewards below.
Woolworths Supermarkets
It’s all about the show stopping centrepieces
- More than one million portions of ham are sold nationally in the lead up to Christmas at Woolworths, and a huge 408,000 of these are set to sell in the last seven days.
- Fresh turkey and chickens are also a hit – with 76,000 fresh whole turkeys and 450kgs of whole chickens expected in baskets in the week before Christmas.
Seafood’s moment to shine
- Woolworths expects to sell 890,000 kilos of prawns in the lead up to Christmas – with 80 per cent of fresh prawns sales for 2024 expected to take place on the 24th and 25th December.
- Christmas week is the biggest week for lobster sales at Woolworths’ and around 100,000 cooked Rock Lobsters from Western Australia are set to sell in the final week.
- Christmas is also Woolworths’ biggest week for oyster sales. During Christmas week, customers purchase more than ten times the amount of oysters than they normally would in a week. Last year, during the week of Christmas, customers claimed over 750,000 individual hand-shucked oysters.
Stocking fillers
- Picking up your Christmas cards while shopping? You’re not alone. In fact, more than 450,000 are expected to be sold during the festive season.
- Around 1.8 million tins of shortbread are picked up, like the Woolworths Gold Range Roasted Almond Shortbread tin made by a local family-owned bakery with roasted Australian Almonds, and a lavish coating of icing sugar.
- As something a little bit different, the Christmas Meerkat Figurines are a cult favourite and this year Woolworths has eight designs, selling around 70,000 of these fun ornaments.
Fresh
- The Aussie cherry season is in full swing and customers are set to pick up 750,000 kilos of cherries in Christmas week, representing 25% of the whole cherry season.
- Mangoes are a must for Christmas and we typically sell more than 4 million mangoes in the two weeks leading up to Christmas. The most popular varieties are Kensington Pride, Calypso, R2E2 and Honey Gold.
- Due to the popularity of the Wombok Crispy Noodle Salad, Wombok cabbage sales spike by 120% during Christmas week compared to the weeks prior – we anticipate we’ll sell nearly 90,000 units during the big week.
Woolworths’ Chief Commercial Officer Paul Harker said: “As we head into the final week before Christmas, we always see a surge in demand as menus are finalised and final shops are underway. It’s a busy time for our customers, so we want to make sure they can find everything they need for their festive feast all in one place.
“We want to reassure customers, especially those in VIC and the ACT, that we have plenty of stock in store ready for Christmas as our team has been working incredibly hard to make sure our shelves are stocked with everything Aussies need for their festive celebrations.
“Whether it’s succulent prawns and oysters for seafood lovers, a delicious ham for the main event, juicy cherries and mangoes for a taste of summer, we’ve got all the Christmas classics Aussies love to serve up.”
BIG W
BIG W Commercial Director Amanda Lunn said: “At BIG W, we’re passionate about making Christmas special for every family, no matter their budget. This year, we’ve introduced four stunning new Christmas decoration collections, from nostalgic and coastal vibes to playful and whimsical themes—ensuring there’s something for everyone.
“We know affordability is key. That’s why over half of our Christmas range is priced at $5 and under. Families can find decorations starting at just $1, tree and decoration bundles for $30, and a 48-pack of baubles for only $10. It’s never been easier to create a beautifully styled home without overspending,” she said.
“Since launching our Christmas range, we expect to sell 10,000 kilometres of wrapping paper, enough to travel the distance between Sydney and Perth and back. Our tinsel sales will wrap around the Opera House 52,000 times, and we’re set to sell eight million individual round baubles – if we strung them all together, they would stretch across Sydney Harbour twice.
“Our toy range continues to bring joy to kids nationwide, with exciting projections for the six weeks leading up to Christmas. We expect to sell 840,000 LEGO packs, which if stacked together would reach over 26 kilometres, taller than 75 Eiffel Towers,” Ms Lunn said.
“We’re also anticipating the sale of 195,000 Barbies, enough to create a lineup stretching 65 kilometres, enough to line up and stretch from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast.
“And for cuddly companions, our 134,000+ Squishmallows would stretch to an impressive 26 kilometres, bringing a soft touch to countless Christmas stockings this year.
“This Christmas, we’re helping families celebrate in style, whether it’s gifting, decorating, or preparing for festive gatherings. At BIG W, magic doesn’t have to come with a big price tag,” she said.
BIG W fun facts
Since launching its Christmas range:
- “We expect to sell 121,000 Christmas trees, stacked on top of each other, they would reach 250 times the height of the world’s tallest building.
- “We will sell 65 million individual LED Christmas lights.
- “If we laid out all our Christmas tablecloths, they would cover the MCG field 16 times.”
In the six weeks leading up to Christmas:
- “We expect to sell over 625,000 Hot Wheels Diecast and Vehicles, which could form a dazzling chain of cars covering 38 kilometres, almost the distance of a full marathon.”
- More than 4 million books will be sold, making it a family favourite this Christmas.
- Over 97,000 bikes and scooters will be sold, ready to inspire adventure and outdoor fun for kids this holiday season.
- “The innovation of 160,000 VTech products would line up to 32 kilometres, highlighting how far we’re going to inspire learning and play.”
EVERYDAY REWARDS
This year, almost 800,000 Everyday Rewards members have chosen to bank their points to spend over Christmas, an increase of 14% since last year. Members have banked on average $104 to spend.
Everyday Rewards Managing Director Hannah Ross said Bank for Christmas is a great money saving tool for members: “We know Christmas can be an expensive time of year and Bank for Christmas is a great way for Everyday Rewards members to collect points on their everyday shops, banking the dollars for when they’re needed most.
“This year we have also introduced more ways to help our members collect points, for example through partnerships with Accor and Westpac Altitude Rewards and added places to redeem their points through Petstock and our new Everyday Rewards Shop, helping to deliver a lot more value every day to our members.”
Last year, over $82 million Everyday Rewards points were redeemed over the Christmas period until Jan 1. Members used their Bank for Christmas dollars to purchase:
- 276,000 punnets of strawberries
- 238,000 Hass Avocados
- 171,000 Bananas
- 158,000 Half legs of ham
- 149,000 bottles of thickened cream
- 147,000 quarters of watermelon
- 134,000 punnets of blueberries
- 116,000 punnets of raspberries
- 94,000 bags of 1kg carrots
- 93,000 mangoes.