The news comes as pressure mounts on the supermarket giant, which is being scrutinised along with other supermarkets by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), as part of an investigation into the competitiveness of retail prices and alleged price gouging.
Woolworths has also come under fire recently for its decision not to stock Australia Day products, and this week the supermarket boss coped widespread criticism after walking out on an interview with Four Corners.
Four Corners reporter, Angus Grigg, quoted former head of ACCC, Rod Sims, as saying Australia has one of the most concentrated supermarket sectors in the world, which Banducci promptly denied.
In defending his claims, Banducci said Sims is retired and the world has become much more competitive, but Grigg quickly shot him down by pointing out Sims retired just 18 months ago. After the Woolworth CEO's request to delete his remarks were denied, he walked out of the interview, but soon returned following a conversation with his public relations team.
While speaking to 6PR Breakfast, Sims said Banducci made a genuine point in saying he is two years out-of-date with the competition data.
However, the latest Food and Grocery Code Independent Reviewer Annual Report shows in 2022-23 Woolworths had a 37 per cent share of Australia's food and grocery sector market, and along with Coles holds a 65 per cent share. Meanwhile, Aldi held a 10 per cent market share, Metcash 7 per cent, and all others a combined 18 per cent.
Despite all the recent bad publicity, Woolworths praised Banducci for his "outstanding leadership and contribution."
Woolworths Group chair, Scott Perkins, said "the test of any CEO is to leave the business in much better shape than when they started."
"On that simple metric, history will judge Brad to have been one of Woolworths Group's finest leaders," he said.
Seemingly, Banducci's retirement has been planned for some time, with Woolworth's also announcing Woollies X leader, Amanda Bardwell, will commence as the new CEO in September, following the release of the Group's 2024 financial year results.
"Following an extensive international search process supported by external consultants, we are thrilled to announce the appointment of Amanda as the incoming and 13th Managing Director and Group CEO of Woolworths Group, as the Group starts its next century of creating better experiences together for a better tomorrow," Perkin said.
