From Smeg knives to Little Shop: The supermarket giveaways that hooked Kiwis

With Woolworths announcing its latest promotion “Ooshies” to entice shoppers into its stores, the Herald takes a look back at five promotions that proved popular with Kiwi shoppers.

“Collectible promotions are tried and true. We seem to be hard-wired to collect things,” wrote marketing academics Louise and Martin Grimmer in an article for the Conversation.

They argue marketers regularly announce collectables as a way to exploit the human urge to collect.

Disney Ooshies will be available from Woolworths from July 13 with customers receiving one collectible for every $30 spent. The collection features 40 characters from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars.

The Herald looked back at five supermarket promotions that made headlines across New Zealand.

5. New World’s Spiegelau glasses

During the inaugural 2019 promotion, New World granted shoppers a sticker for every $20 spent, and once a certain number of stickers were collected, they could be exchanged for different types of glasses.

Some customers were irate after being left with empty wallets and no glassware after many stores ran out of stock.

The promotion ran over the Christmas break from early November 2019 to January 12 and more than 700,000 sets – or 1.4 million glasses – were collected.

Many shoppers were upset after stores ran out of stock. Photo / New World Facebook

4. Countdown’s Farm Bricks

Countdown (now Woolworths) launched Bricks in 2021 with Lego-like brick collectables made from 80% of hard-to-recycle recycled plastic.

Shoppers could build their own eco-friendly supermarket, complete with aisles of groceries, supermarket staff, solar panels, produce and even a free fruit bowl for kids.

It appears that drew the ire of the Danish toy production company Lego who told shoppers not to be confused with its products – although it held back on legal action.

Countdown followed up the promotion with Bricks Farm, where shoppers (or their children) could build their own farm, in a nod to the farmers who supply its supermarkets.

Danish toy company Lego wanted everyone to know this was not their product.

3. New World’s Little Garden

The Little Garden promotion ran for multiple years and rewarded customers with seedling kits. There were 24 varieties including carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, beetroot and edible flowering plants such as pansies.

Instead of spending the money to collect each kit, a determined Trade Me user got their hands on a full set in a 2020 auction.

There were a total of 68 bids in the auction. Photo / Trade Me

The full 24-piece set, sold on Trade Me in 2020 for $72.

The Trade Me listing had 68 bids and 277 people watching the listing.

Each Little Garden seedling has its own name – from Baron von Basil, and Orla Onion, to Tamaiti Tomato.

2. New World’s Little Shop

The Little Shop promotion in 2013 allowed customers who spent more than $40 at New World to get a miniature product – anything from petit pineapples to tiny tins of peaches. There were 44 products in the set.

New World Masterton manager Ivan Birch said the promotion was a hit with children and adults alike.

“I think it’s brought out the inner child in all our customers,” he said.

Ivan Birch with some of the miniatures on offer in 2013. Photo / NZME

1. New World’s Smeg Knives

New World’s Smeg knife promotion in 2021 was one of New Zealand’s most successful giveaways, dubbed the “The Summer of Smeg” by Foodstuffs North Island chief executive Chris Quin.

Towards the end of the promotion, customers were struggling to get their hands on the coveted knife blocks, with the majority of stores across the country running out of products.

Full sets were going on TradeMe for anywhere from $300 to $650.

The Commerce Commission even received two complaints about the promotion.

Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy said of the complaints it saw, customers appeared annoyed they weren’t adequately informed that some of the promotional products weren’t available, before they commenced shopping.

Stickers and products quickly went up on Trade Me.

A complete set of knives was selling for $600 with 27 people watching the auction, while a full sticker booklet was up for sale at $325 with more than 20 people placing their bids to try and nab it.