A Race to the Bottom

The supermarket environment is all about pricing and increasingly about home brand products where there might be opportunity for some additional margin. Judging from the price of coffee though, it is hard to see where that margin might come from.

Aldi has its Lazzio brand, an Italian sounding name not to be confused with the region of Lazio, that weighs in at a remarkable $11.49 per kg. That coffee has actually been decorated at The Golden Bean competition.

Not so decorated though is Urban Coffee Culture, the Coles coffee that despite its brand does not really capture the hipster zeitgeist. $12 will get you 3 coffees at most cafés; at Coles it will get you a whole kilo of beans.