
Oh man.
After 33 years of red and white packaging, blazing a trail in trollies Australia-wide, Woolies announced today that they’re renaming almost 1000 Homebrand products.
When I read about this shocking news in the paper, I felt sad about it. Sure, there will still be the generic brand goods. It’s just that the black, white and red no-nonsense label we know and love will be gone, replaced by “Essentials” (which will probably look a bit more classy).
Since the rise of cheap grocery chains like Aldi, who sell generic-brand goods with slightly-askew-but-still-fancier-packaging, the SMG reports that Woolies has been fighting the perception that Homebrand is inferior.
So, light a candle for the red and white, as it is relegated to the generic brand rubbish heap alongside Franklins, and Bi-Lo, whose black and white generic-brand packaging spoke of a DIFFERENT TIME. A SIMPLER TIME.
Never forget the black, white and red. Never forget.
So on behalf of the students, the apprentices, the backpackers, the working families of this great country, the people of Australia who flew the red and white like the austerity flag it was, the people whose trollies said “Yes, I’m watching my pennies”, thank you, Homies. Thank you for your flour, and your pasta, your pantry staples, your cheese, and your 85-cent bread. But most of all, thank you for the hidden gems in your product line up. There were some absolute corkers, here’s five of the hits: