How the Primary Connect team helps the Townsville community

Queensland-based Erin Mealey worked in management roles at Big W and Woolworths supermarkets before applying for a position with Primary Connect, Woolworths Group supply chain business at the Townsville Regional Distribution Centre (RDC) three years ago. 

Following the 2019 floods, the RDC underwent a $12 million expansion to deliver a more resilient supply chain network for communities in Far North Queensland. Erin and the devoted RDC team can now futureproof against severe weather events; better service the region’s 39 Woolworths supermarkets; and build rewarding careers within Woolworths Group..

“Woolworths Group has helped regional north Queensland by providing stable jobs and a greater service for our customers,” says Erin, who celebrates 15 years with the Woolworths Group this year. “The investment was a confidence boost for everyone in this region and us here at the DC.”
 

Erin started her Woolworths Group career with a casual night-fill position at the Airlie Beach Big W store in 2009. She was then offered a trainee management position and then a full-time role as Department Manager.

Always up for a challenge, Erin later accepted a store manager position at Big W Kingaroy before moving into Woolworths Supermarkets at the Bowen store on the north-east coast of Queensland.

“I started off as the grocery manager and ended up being the fresh combined manager,” she says.

In 2020, Erin took six months off when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her shock diagnosis, treatment and recovery prompted her to look for new career opportunities and a fresh start within Woolworths Group.

“I was looking for something new as I had been working in customer-facing roles for more than 10 years,” she says. “At the time, they were talking a lot about the DC expansion in Townsville so I applied for a team leader role. Not having experience, I started as a picker and then, after six months or so, I moved into the dispatch team coordinator role and I did that for a year-and-a-half.”

Erin’s passion and dedication for her work – and for Woolworths Group – was noticed by her manager, respected Supply Chain Manager Shane Kerr, who promoted Erin to Safety Lead of the Townsville site 12 months ago.

“It was really nice to have someone like Shane give me the opportunity to prove myself,” says Erin. “There is so much room to grow a career with Woolworths Group. 

“Just because you start out in one position, you’re by no means stuck in that position forever. There are so many opportunities – you just have to say yes to them!”

With a 10,416-square-metre footprint, the Townsville RDC is now more than double its original size. The expanded site can hold an additional 435 fresh food and essential product lines, including key contingency items such as toilet paper, longlife milk and nappies, which is especially essential in the event of natural disasters.
 

With the RDC servicing 39 Woolworths supermarkets from Sarina to Weipa, Shane, Erin and the team play a vital role in servicing Queensland customers, many of whom have faced tough times in recent years with natural disasters including cyclones and flooding.

“It is always nice to be part of a team that has the capacity and willingness to do good in our communities,” says Shane. “This is one of the things I love so much about this DC and the drivers around why the site was extended.”

Erin says that the high-motivated and engaged RDC team inspires her to do her best every day.

“Our whole DC has the ability to come together as a team and get the job done,” says Erin. “It seems like the more we ask of the team, the more they rise to the occasion.

“We work together and we are looked after. I feel valued here by Shane and the team. It is so nice to have my contribution recognised.”