Noel Leeming taken to court by Commerce Commission

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#3395837 21-Jul-2025 13:52

Its fun when you find the exact same products in a slightly different package (literally a bit of text different, not even in context of the spec), its enough for a retailer to say its different.

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dafman

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#3395839 21-Jul-2025 13:58

xpd:

Its fun when you find the exact same products in a slightly different package (literally a bit of text different, not even in context of the spec), its enough for a retailer to say its different.

It would be great if someone could show an example of matching products with different SKUs or different packaging. I regularly price match and have never experienced this.

Handle9

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#3395841 21-Jul-2025 14:04

dafman:

xpd:

Its fun when you find the exact same products in a slightly different package (literally a bit of text different, not even in context of the spec), its enough for a retailer to say its different.

It would be great if someone could show an example of matching products with different SKUs or different packaging. I regularly price match and have never experienced this.

It’s most common with tools.

robjg63

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#3395846 21-Jul-2025 14:15

speshnz:

richms:

Now do mitre10 over the meaningless "trade quantities" BS that they have both pulled on me when getting sistemas on price match.

Any both them and bunnings for having the exact same product with a slightly different SKU so it doesn't qualify for matching

There was a 'shock' article to that effect on Stuff earlier this year. Someone had just worked out what most of us have known for years.

A place like Bunnings will get the supplier/manufacturer to pop a different brand (Bunnings has a few 'home' brand names they use) on the product.

Then the price beat will never apply.

They also make sure that the well known big name suppliers supply 'exclusive' models to Bunnings/M10 on the NZ/AU market and they have that covered off too.

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler

richms

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#3395848 21-Jul-2025 14:19

Its very common with the dewalt packs of tools to have different combinations between the 2. Different useless light or combo of supplied batteries. Then there are redemption deals that come up and mean they will not match.

This is done by the suppliers as they are generally the ones that lose out on price matching, not the retailer. Big hardware chains work like supermarkets more than normal retailers, go watch one of the youtubes from a current affairs show on suppliers complaining about bunnings in AU for how they are treated.

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#3395849 21-Jul-2025 14:28

dafman:

xpd:

Its fun when you find the exact same products in a slightly different package (literally a bit of text different, not even in context of the spec), its enough for a retailer to say its different.

It would be great if someone could show an example of matching products with different SKUs or different packaging. I regularly price match and have never experienced this.

last time i saw it was trying to price match 4 packs of LED downlights. Both 4 packs of the same model of light.. SKU between M10 and Bunnings was literally 1 digit difference. I just checked now and they're the same now... so maybe it was just some weird quirk with transitions

richms

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#3395850 21-Jul-2025 14:32

I price matched some of the cheap crap orange hue bulbs between the 2 places in the past ok, and when I went back to get more they had dropped the shelf price to be just below the bunnings price so that they didnt have to do it again.

Also spoiler alert - the hue were just as unreliable as the aliexpress lamps.

Richard rich.ms

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eracode

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#3395903 21-Jul-2025 15:03

From the Stuff article cited in the OP: "Noel Leeming’s Chief Operating Officer, Jason Bell, said he was “baffled” by the move and maintains the business has “committed no offence and will vigorously defend this”."

Of course he's going to say this, isn't he. Problem is, what the COO thinks is happening and what he's told internally, is likely to be very different from what's actually going on at the coalface. Policy does not equal practice. His whole denial statement about how great they are etc is a masterpiece of Corp Babble.

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networkn

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#3395908 21-Jul-2025 15:32

eracode:

From the Stuff article cited in the OP: "Noel Leeming’s Chief Operating Officer, Jason Bell, said he was “baffled” by the move and maintains the business has “committed no offence and will vigorously defend this”."

Of course he's going to say this, isn't he. Problem is, what the COO thinks is happening and what he's told internally, is likely to be very different from what's actually going on at the coalface. Policy does not equal practice. His whole denial statement about great they are etc is a masterpiece of Corp Babble.

There is no way, that if leadership at a company the size of NL wanted to treat their customers a particular way, that after all this time, it wouldn't be happening, unless the leadership is utterly incompetent.

The reality is, it's good business for them to keep doing this, until such time as enforcement costs them more.

Change occurs once the consequence of maintaining the status quo is too high.

Leadership are aware of their current practices and at least unofficially encourage it.

You can tell by the fact they will try and tell you they aren't responsible, but the moment you mention the CGA, 'all of a sudden' they recall the 'correct' process and get that underway.

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#3395912 21-Jul-2025 15:38

I had a terrible time with Noel Leeming to get a price match on some really common Sony headphones. Showed them 3 separate shops that had a lower price and got nothing but a string of excuses, even from the manager. Have never bought anything there since as a result.

Never had an issue at Bunnings or Mitre 10 - just double check the respective website to make sure it's the same product number.

eracode

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#3395917 21-Jul-2025 15:58

networkn:

Leadership are aware of their current practices and at least unofficially encourage it.

You can tell by the fact they will try and tell you they aren't responsible, but the moment you mention the CGA, 'all of a sudden' they recall the 'correct' process and get that underway.

This isn't a price match story but a few weeks ago I had a major stick-drift problem with an eight-month-old PS5 controller, came with PS5 Pro bought from NL. I took it back and they were adamant that it had to go to Sony for repair or a decision, which would take three weeks. I argued all the obvious problems with this and their logic (it's an $85 item - not going to be repaired) but no dice.

I asked to speak to the manager and another staff member stepped in. Went through it again and I mentioned CGA and the warranty - and was assertive. Then they started mumbling between themselves and after a bit of to-ing and fro-ing, they gave me a new one off the shelf.

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

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#3395918 21-Jul-2025 16:03

I had an issue with NL years ago, I made a claim under the CGA for a Mac Laptop.

The person who was meant to handle this knew ZERO, had ZERO authority to do anything.
She claimed it the same as the warranty multiple times
She claimed I had to deal with Apple multiple times

I showed her the legislation with those exact points highlighted (I expected this kind of push back)

She tried to demand I pay a fee for "their" person to look at it, which again is not how it works.

She was actually yelling at me by the end of it and all I did was talk back to her telling her what she was saying went agains the CGA, and fair trade.

They grudgingly too the laptop, then the manager hounded the manager of the local Apple repair centre about it, who then billed them about $1000 for their time (LOL, I knew the local repair manager and met him at a meeting....and he "So it was YOU....I told them multiple times to just get it done"

They (NL) got Apple (Singapore) to call me and it was sorted within minutes with a new motherboard sent to the local repair centre .

And I have since had multiple times been told that I MUST buy an extended warranty if I want peace of mind, I say CGA to shut them up on that.

I also have a discount card with them, and the senior sales people will hand me off to a junior sales person because their commission gets a hit too and they can not be bothered with that. Tie up the Jr while they seek a better commission.

The PNCC has butchered the traffic around the corner they are, and I avoid it like the plague , so I have not been there for years now.

ToPGuNZ

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#3395924 21-Jul-2025 16:19

I have asked for a lot of price matches at my local Noel Leeming over the years, as far as I can recall all have been accepted. Some I have been very surprised at due to the substantial difference. Maybe it’s being in an area with lots of competition, maybe just a store that is more accommodating with the practise. Albany, Auckland.

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#3395926 21-Jul-2025 16:30

Slightly off topic, but I have CONSTANTLY been told by NL at purchase time that if I don't buy their extended warranty then the second the factory warranty period runs out they won't fix the item. Given the frequency of this statement I believe there is zero chance this is an accidental misunderstanding by a salesperson and not a (false) statement they have been directed and trained to dish out.

eracode

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#3395928 21-Jul-2025 16:43

ToPGuNZ:

I have asked for a lot of price matches at my local Noel Leeming over the years, as far as I can recall all have been accepted. Some I have been very surprised at due to the substantial difference. Maybe it’s being in an area with lots of competition, maybe just a store that is more accommodating with the practise. Albany, Auckland.

I'm sounding like a 'me too' guy but just remembered that I did a NL price match on a MacBook Air M2 15" in late 2023 - that was on sale elsewhere. This was at NL Albany and it was handled quickly and easily. Not a huge difference involved - about $100 IIRC - and NL was a closer drive for me.

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

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