• Woolworths will axe its plans to build the Darwin’s largest Dan Murphy’s store within walking distance of the city’s biggest Aboriginal community in Bagot.
• An independent panel issued a series of recommendations this week to the retailer’s board, including that the development should not go ahead due to the company not doing enough to consult with local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
• “As to whether there’s a future store for Dan Murphy’s in Darwin, that will be up to the Endeavour Group,” said Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci.
• Visit Business Insider Australia’s homepage for more stories.

The head of supermarket giant Woolworths has left the door open for a potential new Dan Murphy’s in a different site in Darwin after the retailer confirmed it would not go ahead with its initial location after an independent review found the company had not sufficiently consulted with Indigenous stakeholders.

Woolworths told investors it would axe its plans to build the Darwin’s largest Dan Murphy’s store within walking distance of the city’s biggest Aboriginal community in Bagot. Local Indigenous community groups had likened the decision to Rio Tinto’s destruction of Juukan Gorge.

An independent panel, lead by lawyer Danny Gilbert, issued a series of recommendations this week to the retailer’s board, including that the development should not go ahead due to the company not doing enough to consult with local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

However, Brad Banducci, Woolworths’ chief executive, told media on Thursday the decision to not go ahead with the development did not mean the company would not potentially seek to build at a different location in the future, saying the decision would be one for the management of the retailer’s soon to be demerged Endeavour Drinks division.

“As to whether there’s a future store for Dan Murphy’s in Darwin, that will be up to the Endeavour Group,” he said. “But certainly in any engagement process going forward we will take on the Gilbert review findings and make sure we adjust how we consult on those matters.”

Mr Banducci said he was not disappointed by the decision to cease development at the site, though the executive stressed he and the board had not done anything “wrong”.

“There’s nothing wrong with what we’ve done, to be clear, but there are ways we can enhance what we did,” Mr Banducci said. “We want to set a high benchmark for ourselves and the way we engage with the community, and [the report has] some good practical observations on how we do that.”

In a joint statement, local Indigenous health and social services groups said the backflip from Woolworths was a “huge community victory”, but called on the retailer to assure Endeavour would not again attempt to build the store following the mooted demerger.

“Until Woolworths confirms they will retain the liquor licence, the possibility of a Dan Murphy’s being built in the greater Darwin area will remain,” a spokesperson for Danila Dilba Health Service, Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory, NT Council of Social Services Northern Territory and the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education said.

“Woolworths cannot leave the back door open for another application in the months and years ahead by themselves or their alcohol arm Endeavour Group.”

Woolworths shares tumbled nearly 4 per cent to $39.92 following the news, however, this was in reaction to a downbeat trading update also released by the retailer on Thursday.

This story originally appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald. Read the original story here.

Follow Business Insider Australia on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.