By the early ’70s supermarkets had 50% share of the grocery market, a substantial increase since 1968-69, when a third of the groceries in Australia were sold in supermarkets. Five years later, this had increased to half. In 1973, Woolworths had 20% of the Australian grocery market, followed by Coles with 14%. The Davids group, which included Supa Valu and Foodland, had 5%, Franklins had 4%, and the Western Australian group FAL 1%. The remaining 55% was shared by other retailers.
In 1974, Coles alone had 197 New World Supermarkets and 116 smaller Food Markets, as well as 16 Kmarts, all of which had a grocery section. The 1970s saw major chains introduce home brands with Coles launching the Farmland range of food products and Woolworths introducing own brands in 1973. Franklins launched its ‘no frills’ house brand in 1978.