As of 31 October 2026, Haigh's Chocolates is adding two stores at Westfield Chermside and Westfield Carindale, following its first Brisbane store at Westfield Mt Gravatt in August, which the company says drew hundreds of shoppers on opening day. The South Australian chocolatier opened a 120 million dollar production and logistics facility last year to support a wider national distribution network. For a premium food brand, every new counter is a supply decision as much as a property decision, and the Christmas trading period is when that decision gets tested.
Two counters, one supply chain
Distribution is usually discussed as a number of outlets, but for a fresh-adjacent category it is really a promise about availability. A shopper who finds an empty shelf twice stops checking the third time, and the loss is not one sale but the habit. Adding two counters in the same city increases the number of places where that promise can be kept, and also the number of places where it can be broken.
The facility built last year is the part that makes the expansion possible. Production and logistics capacity decides how quickly a new store can be stocked to the same standard as an established one, and whether seasonal peaks are served from stock or from allocation. When capacity is tight, new counters tend to open with reduced ranges, which is the opposite of what a debut is meant to signal.
What a counter changes for availability
Range depth before range width
The tempting move is to open with the full festive range. The safer move is to open with the depth that the supply chain can repeat weekly, and to add width once replenishment is stable. Consumer demand in premium chocolate is seasonal and spiky, so a range that cannot be repeated turns a strong opening week into an out of stock story by the second weekend.
Distance changes the cost of a stockout
Brisbane sits far from the South Australian production base, so the cost of a stockout is not just the lost sale but the recovery time. A store in the same state can be topped up overnight; a store two states away cannot. That asymmetry is why distribution planning for Queensland usually starts with a safety stock decision rather than a marketing calendar.
There is also a service dimension that does not show up in availability data. Complimentary tastings and in-store service require staff time per visitor, and a store that is short staffed will quietly reduce the very experience that justifies the premium. Category growth in this segment comes from converting gift buyers, and gift buyers convert on experience, not on shelf count.
Where the model strains
Three centres in one metropolitan market is a deliberate test of cannibalisation. If the new counters simply move sales from Mt Gravatt, the network looks bigger while the economics stay flat. The useful question is whether the new sites reach a trade area the first store could not serve, and whether the brand gains a share of Christmas gifting it did not have before.
| Signal | What it shows | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| Sales at the debut store after the openings | Cannibalisation or genuine addition | A small dip is healthy, a large one is not |
| Repeat visits per shopper | Whether the habit formed | Counts more than opening week traffic |
| Out of stock lines per week | Whether supply matches the promise | Rising counts mean capacity is short |
| Gift pack attachment | Seasonal conversion quality | Low attachment means range is too narrow |
Market size in Australian premium chocolate is not growing fast enough to absorb three stores selling the same range to the same shoppers. The growth has to come from share taken from supermarket gifting aisles, and that contest is won on availability and experience together. A brand that opens counters without fixing replenishment is buying visibility it cannot sustain.
The four step check before the next opening
The first step is the one most often skipped, because catchment work feels slower than signing a lease. In practice the overlap number decides whether an opening adds revenue or redistributes it, and it is far cheaper to measure before the fit out than after. Two counters in one city can be a strong move or an expensive one, and the difference is visible in that map.
The second step protects the promise. A store that opens with a range the supply chain can repeat will look the same in week six as in week one, which is what builds the habit. A store that opens wide and thins out teaches shoppers that the brand is unreliable, and that lesson travels faster than any opening promotion.
FAQ
Why does availability matter more than the number of stores?
Because a shopper who finds an empty shelf twice stops checking. The lost habit costs more than the single sale, and new counters multiply both the chances to keep the promise and to break it.
What does the 120 million dollar facility change?
It sets how fast a new store can be stocked to the same standard as an established one. Without capacity headroom, new counters tend to open with reduced ranges, which weakens the debut.
How do you spot cannibalisation early?
Track sales at existing stores for eight weeks after an opening. A small dip is normal as shoppers redistribute; a large and sustained drop means the new trade area was already served.
Is range width a good opening signal?
No. Range depth that can be repeated weekly is the better signal, with width added once replenishment is stable and stockouts are under control.
