“Exorbitant” price of beer at the football puts Merivale in the spotlight
Merivale Group owner Justin Hemmes is not only under fire for alleged wage theft, but he has also now been forced to defend the price of beer at Sydney Football Stadium.
Beer starts $9.30 and peaks at $13.40 for a premium Stone & Wood beer.
Speaking on 2GB with Jim Wilson, the discussion became heated when the radio host raised the high cost of dining and drinking at the football.
While Wilson praised the quality of food and Merivale’s new offerings, he questioned whether prices were affordable for the average punter and families calling them “exorbitant”.
Hemmes refuted the claim, saying people had choice.
“We have entry point offerings with an improved quality at the same pricing.”
Wilson wasn’t having a bar of it, comparing the price of beer at the stadium, to the cost of beer at Dan Murphy’s or Costco, where it is much cheaper to buy equivalent products.
“That is not a fair comparison,” Hemmes said.
“You’re talking very different businesses and completely different business models. You can’t compare Dan Murphy’s to an operation at the stadium.”
Hemmes said the price of a Toohey’s was only $1 more than most Sydney pubs, while pointing out that the premium beer on sale was the stadium’s best seller.
He also highlighted the costs of running stadium hospitality, including employing 1000 staff to run 14 hospitality stalls for two to three hours.
“To put on the entertainment, to put on the food, to put on the beverages and everything that goes into it, it is one of the most expensive hospitality businesses to run,” Hemmes said.
“We can’t lose money because then we’re not even there to sell (food and beverages).”
Merivale Group took over catering at the ground earlier this year after a $828 million taxpayer-funded rebuild. The group is also responsible for the Sydney Cricket Ground.
In the background, Hemmes is embroiled in a legal battle over alleged wage theft, accused of underpaying thousands of employees by $74 million over six years.
Hemmes denies the allegations.
Irit Jackson, 8th September 2022
