its first store in store concept, and building its online offering. Early next year it will open its first store in nearly a year, which Tristan Harris has slated as the company’s latest and greatest. To open in Drummoyne, Sydney, the store will house independently operated concessions including a butcher, fish shop, and deli. The store will also have an extended product range focusing on health foods and grocery. In June, Harris Farm opened its first concession store at Bathurst’s Bernardi’s Marketplace Supa IGA after closing its neighbouring store. The Bathurst concession offers fruit and vegetables and a selected range of specialty grocery lines Harris told Inside Retail PREMIUM the company “has irons in the fire” for the new model following its success in Bathurst, however, remains tightlipped on expansion plans. Clicks and bricks As part of a growing online offering, the company has launched one hour delivery, which Harris says has had a strong take up, and will soon rollout click and collect. “We’ve been working really hard on our online offer and it’s growing consistently.” He says that despite the majors, Coles and Woolworths, trying hard to push online promotions, online grocery pureplays are continuing to lose share. “In fruit and veg we feel that customers lose a bit not being able to look and feel product. “We needed to make sure that what we offered online was going to make up for what customers couldn’t see and touch for themselves. “If you take that choice away then you have to be delivering. On top of that we’ve worked hard on the service.” Harris Farm will soon launch click and collect services in selected stores, however, Harris has reservations on the trend that is slowing gaining traction in Australia. “A lot of people are talking about that in the industry. I hear about people focusing on it, and it seems to me like a retailer led discussion rather than a consumer led discussion. “It obviously works a lot more efficiently to have someone come and pick up an order from your store than it does to have someone drive it out to them, but I’m unsure of the convenience benefits to the consumer. “I might be completely wrong, there might be a lot of consumers who don’t like walking around and selecting product, but for me that is usually the fun part.” Harris says it will be an interesting test to see whether Harris Farm consumers have a thirst for the service it when it rolls out as a trial. “We’re able to cover a very significant part of the Sydney metro population by just picking out a number of stores. We’ll start click and collect in those stores and if it’s really popular we’ll roll it out to more stores.”