Posts by theo@aacs.org.au

The AACS has welcomed proposed sweeping law reforms that will see all children aged 14 and above tried in adult courts and sentenced as adults for violent crimes committed in Victoria. The Australian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS) represents more than 78,000 convenience store front line staff and across 7,500 stores. AACS CEO Theo Foukkare commended the Allan Government for taking tough action on youth crime, which he said has ferociously escalated – especially in the retail sector – over recent years. “Our members are far too often the victims of violent crime at the hands of youth who have weapons like machetes and other edged weapons. “They come in swinging with weapons and they mentally and physically terrorise staff and other customers. They trash the shop and steal whatever they want. “Youth offending used to be petty but not potentially deadly. It was almost always limited to kids shoplifting…

A takeaway giant has announced it is leaving Australia, with 120 jobs to be lost and thousands of delivery drivers to be impacted. Just Eat has announced it is closing down Menulog in Australia, after 20 years of operation in the country. Menulog began in Sydney in 2006 as a digital on-demand platform linking local restaurants to customers before being bought by UK-based Just Eat in 2015. The closure will impact approximately 120 Australian workers, with customers no longer able to use the service from midnight Wednesday November 26. All impacted employees will be given a “generous redundancy package” above legal requirements and outplacement support, a spokesman for Just Eat confirmed. Eligible couriers who have completed their first delivery at least six months prior to today’s announcement and have completed a successful delivery within the last eight weeks are also eligible for payments. The total number of couriers eligible is…

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas and the Illicit Tobacco and E-cigarette Commissioner (ITEC), Amber Shuhyta, have called on Australia’s banks to take immediate action to strengthen oversight of tobacco and convenience stores with private ATMs and eftpos. Mr Thomas said non-bank ATMs and point of sales payment technologies are being used to buy illicit tobacco products and to launder the cash proceeds. “Any bank receiving funds through these channels is at risk of dealing with illicit proceeds,” Mr Thomas said. “We are asking banks to assess, mitigate, and, where possible, eliminate these risks. “Where banks continue to provide services to tobacconists and convenience stores, they must closely monitor for and report suspicious matters. He said the request is about refocussing existing AML controls to target a fast-growing criminal trade. “This is a crime type that is generating billions of dollars in criminal proceeds, and the scale of the activity is undermining…

Petrol prices are generally cheaper in cities that have more small-to-medium-sized independent petrol retailers competing with larger chains, the ACCC’s latest petrol industry report has found. The report looks at the market composition of Australia’s evolving petroleum industry. It found that among Australia’s capital cities, average retail prices for regular unleaded petrol were highest in Brisbane and Canberra from July 2022 to June 2024, where there are fewer independent petrol retailers in operation. In contrast, average retail petrol prices were generally lower in cities that had more smaller independent petrol retailers. “More competition leads to better outcomes for consumers including lower prices,” ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey said. “Our report found that consumers can often find more competitive petrol prices in cities where there are a greater number of smaller independent petrol retailers.” “We encourage consumers to shop around and take advantage of near real-time petrol price apps and websites to…

A big collective of shopping centre owners, retail chains, fuel companies, pharmacies, security firms, and cleaning industry groups have pooled resources to launch a $7 million campaign reminding Christmas shoppers not to abuse retail staffers. The nationwide “Be Kind in Retail” campaign will run throughout the Christmas trading period on 3,500 digital screens across 350 shopping centres. According to a media release issued by peak body Shopping Centre Council of Australia, the campaign aims to “combat the alarming levels of abuse, intimidation, violence — often with the use of dangerous weapons — towards retail workers, pharmacy staff, cleaners, security officers and shopping centre staff”. The campaign is a joint venture between the Shopping Centre Council, the Pharmacy Guild, National Retail Association, Australian Association of Convenience Stores, Australian Security Industry Association Limited, and Building Service Contractors Association of Australia. The creative was handled by Porter Novelli, in consultation with the various…

A coalition of shopping centre, retail, fuel and convenience, pharmacy, security and cleaning industry groups has relaunched the nation-wide ‘Be Kind in Retail’ campaign for the 2025 Christmas trading period, to combat the alarming levels of abuse, intimidation, violence – often with the use of dangerous weapons, towards retail workers, pharmacy staff, cleaners, security officers and shopping centre staff. With the central message “Kindness Never Goes Out of Style,” the campaign calls on the public to show respect to all workers in shopping centre and retail settings during the busy Christmas trading period and holiday season. Whether you’re shopping for groceries, grabbing lunch at the food court, buying a Christmas gift, filling up your car with fuel, or collecting a script at your local pharmacy, the message is clear, show respect and be kind to the people that are simply doing their job. The BKIR campaign aims to continue shifting…