There’s no other servo like David Jones

ELI GREENBLAT
AUGUST 27, 2019
The Australian

Up-market department store David Jones has struck an unlikely partnership with petrol station operator BP that could see customers able to pick up some smoked salmon with their petrol and Coke.

The agreement will see BP select service stations and offer David Jones’ premium brand packaged food.

The new joint venture unveiled this morning marks the latest retailer to dive into the convenience food category, with Coles and Woolworths pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into new packaged meal innovations, specially refurbished stores and deals with Marley Spoon and Uber Eats to cater to the fast-paced growth of convenience and “food on the go” offers.

Now David Jones, better known for its fashion and apparel, will make its play for shoppers hungry for convenience foods and packaged meals, leveraging its growing David Jones Food Halls and food brands to extend the offer outside its traditional department store.

The partners said the agreement combines David Jones Food’s exclusive product range with BP’s expertise in convenience retail and national footprint.

The new range will see more than 350 products on offer, including “food-for-now” and “food-for-later” options, as well as a diverse range of fresh items such as sandwiches, sushi and David Jones Food’s top-selling free-range rotisserie chicken, plus pre-prepared meals and long-life groceries.

Over the next six months 10 sites positioned around major arterials and key suburban regions of Melbourne and Sydney will be renovated to showcase the new offer.

Busy, urban, health-conscious people would be key customers, David Jones said.

“The traditional service station offer of today will not fulfil the retail customer needs of tomorrow,” BP Australia vice president sales and marketing Brooke Miller said. “BP’s vision is to transform convenience retailing in Australia, and enhancing our brand via strategic partnerships underpins our strategy to deliver market-leading fuels, technology, rewards and convenience offers to Australian consumers,” Ms Miller said.

“Multiple shopping missions will be catered for and BP’s high-quality offers won’t change; premium fuels will be available on the forecourt, the core range of drinks, snacks and café items will remain, and customers in a rush will be able to use the BP me app or a self-serve kiosk to beat the queue,” she said.

Pieter de Wet, managing director David Jones Food, said: “The launch of this partnership marks an exciting new chapter for David Jones Food. Consumer behaviour is changing and demand for fresh, food-for-now and food-for-later options continues to grow. Customers expect convenience and quality to go hand-in-hand, and our collaboration with BP enables us to share the David Jones Food offering with more customers than ever before.”