Do supermarkets give each other ‘exclusive rights’ on certain items or is there something else going on here? I am a vegetarian and I buy the Veggie Delights ‘classic hot dogs’. They used to only be available from Countdown and I didn’t think much of it. Then Countdown stopped stocking them. A little later I found them at New World, which is now the only place that stocks them.

In other countries different supermarkets stock the same product lines, as ours here also do for many things that are not the store’s own brands. But I wonder if I can spin this particular example into a conspiracy theory. I remember several years ago our local New World suddenly stopped stocking a particular organic milk. I complained and had a long discussion with the store manager about this. Eventually he admitted that orders had come from the New World franchise headquarters to stop stocking this particular milk brand. He didn’t say why and the discussion ended there.

New Zealand does seem to be a country with a monopoly problem (too many to quote here, look up Commerce Commission). So is there something nefarious going on here or does it have a legitimate reason? Why can’t you go into any supermarket and find the same items as in any other one, excepting the store brands, of course? Is it Q’s fault?