Thomas Dux Grocer, also known as Thomas Dux, was an Australian chain of gourmet grocery stores operated by Woolworths from 2008 to 2017.[1]
| Industry | Retail |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 |
| Defunct | 2017 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne Sydney |
Number of locations | 11 |
| Parent | Woolworths |
| Website | www.thomasdux.com.au |
It sold a range of local and imported fresh foods and grocery items. Products included fresh fruit and vegetables, dairy products, artisan-style baked breads, oils and vinegars, pasta and sauces, condiments, prepared meals, chocolate products, fresh meat and fresh flowers. Thomas Dux specialised in organic, gluten-free, preservative-free and free-range foods. Local boutique suppliers included Saskia Beer, Maggie Beer, Simmone Logue, Herbies, Ornella, Phillippa's, Rowie's, Brasserie Bread, Irrewarra and Geoff Jansz. Fruit and vegetables were sourced directly from the wholesale markets in Sydney and Melbourne on a daily basis.
History
editWoolworths launched Thomas Dux, an upmarket grocery store, in April 2008 with the first store in the Sydney suburb of Lane Cove followed by another in Paddington.[2]
In May 2009, Woolworths announced the acquisition of eight boutique grocery store leases in Crows Nest, Hornsby and Mona Vale in Sydney, and Armadale, Black Rock, Glen Waverley, Port Melbourne and Richmond in Melbourne from Macro Wholefoods, with the intention to rebadge the stores under the Thomas Dux brand.[3][4] The first of the rebadged stores opened in August 2009.
From 2014, Woolworths started closing some stores, with speculation that the entire chain would be sold or closed.[5][6][3]
In September 2014, Woolworths closed the Thomas Dux store in Surry Hills. The lease on the store was sold to About Life, a Sydney-based gourmet grocer. The Surry Hills store was the first of four leases Woolworths would ultimately sell to About Life by 2016.[7]
In May 2015 the Richmond store was sold to Little Projects, which then demolished it and built a 13-story apartment building on the land dubbed "Dux Richmond Hill".[8] In January 2016 the Glen Waverley store was closed, and throughout the remainder of 2016 Thomas Dux's Hornsby store in was closed, while its Crows Nest, Lane Cove and Port Melbourne outlets were taken over by About Life.[9][10]
In 2017 the four remaining Thomas Dux stores were closed. The two remaining Melbourne locations, Black Rock [11] and Armadale,[12] as well as the Paddington store [13] were rebranded as Woolworths Metro stores. The Mona Vale store was taken over by Flannerys.[14] As of December 2017, Thomas Dux has ceased trading altogether.[15] In 2021 the former Thomas Dux site at Black Rock was closed, and is believed to be reopening as a BWS or Dan Murphy's liquor outlet.
As at June 2021, Woolworths continued to sell limited gourmet products like cheese under the Thomas Dux brand.[16] This was similar to after buying Macro Wholefoods and closing their stores, but keeping the brand alive as a healthier food range on Woolworths shelves.
Stores
edit| Suburb | Address | Previous use | Subsequent use | Date opened | Date closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surry Hills | 285A Crown Street | Small Woolworths Supermarket | About Life Wholefoods Store, Office space | 19 April 2008 | September 2014 |
| Lane Cove | 62 Burns Bay Road | Food For Less supermarket, Franklins No Frills supermarket | About Life Wholefoods Store, Flannerys Organic Grocer, Pet store | 19 April 2008 | 29 February 2016 |
| Glen Waverley | Shop 2.200 The Glen | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Unknown | 29 August 2009[17] | 31 January 2016 |
| Crows Nest | 13-19 Willoughby Road | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | About Life Wholefoods Store, Flannerys Organic Grocer, Medical centre | 10 October 2009[18] | 26 April 2016 |
| Richmond | 153 Bridge Road | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Residential Apartment Tower | 6 November 2009 | 31 May 2015 |
| Port Melbourne | 120 Bay Street | Development site[3] | About Life Wholefoods Store, Independent supermarket | 7 January 2010 | 29 February 2016 |
| Hornsby | Shop 2009 Westfield Hornsby | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Toys R Us, Uniqlo | 26 September 2009[19] | April 2016 |
| Armadale | 1068 High Street | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Woolworths Metro Supermarket | 19 September 2009 | 4 July 2017[15] |
| Paddington | 220 Glenmore Road | Small Woolworths supermarket | Woolworths Metro Supermarket | 13 August 2008 | October 2017[15] |
| Mona Vale | 12-14 Park Street | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Flannerys Organic Grocer | 5 September 2009[20] | December 2017[15] |
| Black Rock | 40 Bluff Road | Macro Wholefoods store[3] | Woolworths Metro Supermarket | 3 October 2009[21] | 4 July 2017[15] |
References
edit- ^ "Foodweek.com.au".
- ^ Woolworths open first Thomas Dux store Australian Food News 24 April 2008
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Woolworths Limited to expand Thomas Dux Grocer with acquisition of Macro stores" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 April 2019. Woolworths 13 May 2009
- ^ ACCC not to oppose Woolworths' proposed acquisition of Macro Wholefoods Australian Competition & Consumer Commission 17 June 2009
- ^ Heffernan, Madeleine (4 October 2015). "Two Thomas Dux store closures blunt sale talk for Woolworths' upmarket chain". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
- ^ King, Mike (2 February 2016). "Is Woolworths Limited about to shut Thomas Dux?". Retrieved 26 August 2016.
- ^ About life heading to Surry Hills Good Food 21 October 2014
- ^ Dux Richmond Hill Little Projects
- ^ Three Thomas Dux stores in Sydney to close Good Food 26 January 2016
- ^ "Mushroom Grow Kit DIY Grow Bag Australia Mushroom Spores". About Life.
- ^ "Woolworths Supermarket - Buy Groceries Online".
- ^ "Woolworths Supermarket - Buy Groceries Online".
- ^ "Woolworths Supermarket - Buy Groceries Online".
- ^ "Flannerys Mona Vale | Organic Health Food Store & Wholefood Market". Flannerys.
- ^ a b c d e "Woolworths farewells Thomas Dux". Retail World Magazine. December 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
- ^ Speciality cheeses from around the world Woolworths
- ^ Thomas Dux Glen Waverley Launch Thomas Dux
- ^ Thomas Dux Crows Nest Launch Thomas Dux
- ^ Thomas Dux Hornsby Launch Thomas Dux
- ^ Thomas Dux Mona Vale Launch Thomas Dux
- ^ Thomas Dux Black Rock Launch Thomas Dux