The times they are a-changin’ at Woolworths stores across the nation, and if you’re a fan of the fresh service counters, then you’ll probably want to double-check the new hours before you run in to grab a salmon fillet or sliced cacciatore salami.
The grocery giant has made a change to the trading hours of its fresh service counters across Australia, “due to a shift in customer shopping behaviour”.
The initiative was trialled in a handful of NSW stores in May 2022 and kicked off across stores in WA yesterday, August 1.
As a result, Woolies shoppers will now have a little less time to purchase fresh items from the meat, seafood, and deli counters.
From now on, the fresh service deli will trade from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week and the seafood and meat counters will be staffed from 9.30am to 7pm on weekdays and 9am to 7pm on weekends.
A handful of stores will operate longer fresh service counter hours, if there’s still high customer demand in those stores.
However, a Woolworths spokesperson told Perth Now that customers can still purchase similar products, such as chicken breast fillets and salmon, within the packed fresh convenience range in-stores.
“We’ve also moved to standardize our overall operating hours so we can offer a consistent customer experience across our store network,” they said, but this change doesn’t affect West Aussies all too much.
“Select stores across the country will open one hour later or close one hour earlier to align with other stores and better match customer shopping patterns.”
The only store in WA to be impacted by changing opening times will be Eaton Fair, as the majority of WA’s Woolies already open at 8am.
The spokesperson said the changes will be monitored over the coming months, and customer and team member feedback would be taken on board.
In-store signage has been placed at the fresh service counters and at the front of stores to inform customers of the altered trading hours.
If you want to know a little more about the deli meats on offer, a Woolworths worker caused quite a fuss last month when she gave a scathing review of the supermarket’s most popular meats.
Customers are encouraged to check the opening and closing hours of their local Woolworths.
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