Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci has told the supermarket’s suppliers to expect household spending to hit a “tipping point” in January.

Banducci told suppliers, during a “confidential forum” that buying habits will “unquestionably change”, as eight straight months of rate hikes, inflation, and higher electricity bills will make cost of living “top of mind by the end of January” for Australians.

Banducci also shared internal data that shows 41 per cent of its customers are waiting for items to go on sale before buying them.

The return to school, usually a costly time, will be even more pronounced for families this year.

“Back to school is a tipping point,” Banducci told suppliers. “It’s always a tipping point, but this year it’s a bigger tipping point than usual where we think our customers are going to stop talking about value and acting on value.”

“You get back from your holidays, you pay your bills, you start paying for your children’s schooling, and you are not in your normal habitual shopping cycle and you establish new habits.

“Customers see inflation, they experience the impact, they’ve had savings to rely on, at Christmas they want – or should I say deserve – to celebrate with family and friends.

“We all need to work very hard to ensure that we are prepared for the tipping point and are prepared to give customers the value they need, not the value they want.

“It’s about giving the value they need, given the pressure they are going to see next year with interest rates, energy and food inflation continuing on.

“As customers go into the new year, they are going to make adjustments, what they see as value is unquestionably going to change and we will all need to lean into this and help customers get the value they need.”