Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty. Ltd., doing business asColes, is an Australian supermarket, retail and consumer services chain, headquartered inMelbourne as part ofColes Group. Founded in 1914 in the suburb ofCollingwood bySir George Coles, the company currently operates 846^[3] supermarkets throughout Australia, including several now-re-brandedBi-Lo stores. Coles has over 120,000 employees^[3][4] and accounts for around 27 per cent of the Australian market.^[5]

Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty. Ltd.

Logo used since 1991
Trade name	Coles
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail,supermarket andconsumer services
Founded	1914; 111 years ago (1914)
Founder	George Coles
Headquarters	Hawthorn East,Victoria, Australia
Number of locations	846 stores (2023)
Area served	Australia
Key people	Leah Weckert (managing director) Curtis Stone (ambassador)
Revenue	A$38.175 billion (2019)[1]
Operating income	A$1.414 billion (2018)[2]
Total assets	A$21.644 billion (2018)
Number of employees	~120,000
Parent	Coles Group
Subsidiaries	Coles Online
Website	coles.com.au

Coles Online is the company's online shopping ('click & collect' and home delivery) service.

Between 1986 and 2006, Coles Supermarkets was a brand of Coles Myer, laterColes Group, prior toWesfarmers purchasing Coles Group in 2007. It became a subsidiary of Coles Group again after Wesfarmersspun off the business in November 2018.^[6]

In 2020, Coles changed its slogan to "Value the Australian way".

George Coles learned the retail trade working for his father's 'Coles Store' business from 1910 to 1913. (The store continued operating as "The Original Coles" atWilmot, Tasmania until it was destroyed by a fire on 24 January 2014.^[7]) Coles itself was founded when George Coles opened the Coles Variety Store on 9 April 1914 onSmith Street in theMelbourne suburb ofCollingwood. Further expansion occurred and Coles' interest in food retailing was spurred in 1958 when it acquired 54 John Connell Dickins grocery stores. It then acquired the Beilby's chain in South Australia in 1959 and 265 Matthews Thompson grocery stores in New South Wales in 1960.^[8]

In 1960, the first supermarket (trading under the Dickins name) was opened in the Melbourne suburb ofBalwyn North, at the corner ofBurke andDoncaster Roads where a modernised version continues to operate. By 1973, Coles had established stores in all Australian capital cities. From 1962, its supermarkets were brandedColes New World with accompanying Space Age-themed imagery.^[9] In 1991, the stores were rebrandedColes Supermarkets and from 1998, simply asColes.

In 2004, the liquor division office (Coles Liquor Group), was moved fromChullora inSydney to the company head office inHawthorn East, Melbourne. WithColes Myer CEO John Fletcher citing the move for better efficiency between the food and liquor departments. It also resulted in Craig Watkins (35-year veteran and director of Coles Liquor) retiring from the company.^[10]

From mid 2006, manyBi-Lo supermarkets were badged as Coles Supermarkets. Newmart supermarkets, under which Bi-Lo traded inWestern Australia, were badged as Coles Supermarkets in 2002–2003. Newmart stores co-located with Coles in the same area or shopping centre were sold to Foodland and re-branded as the now-defunctAction Supermarkets chain. The conversion program was put on hold at Easter 2007.^[11] In July 2007,Wesfarmers agreed terms to purchase Coles Group for $22 billion. The purchase was completed in early 2008.^[12]

In August 2007, as Wesfarmers foreshadowed its plans for the restructuring of Coles Group following its anticipated takeover, it stated that one of three planned divisions would comprise supermarkets, liquor and convenience stores.^[13]

From 2008 to 2014, Coles was run by UK retailerIan McLeod.^[14]

In February 2011, Coles acquiredNational Australia Bank's 50 per cent interest in Australia's largest loyalty programFlybuys, giving it 100% ownership.^[15] In September 2011, Coles commenced stocking private-label clothing in its stores with several stores receiving refits to accommodate the range.^[16]

In 2018 Wesfarmers announced its intention to demerge the Coles business, seeking to retain only a 20% interest going forward.^[17] In 2018, Steven Cain was appointed as CEO of the Coles Supermarket brand as part of the demerger of Coles from Wesfarmers.

Coles deployed its first electric truck in April 2022.^[18] The first fully electric delivery vans followed in August 2023.^[19]

In April 2023, Coles opened its first Witron-powered automated distribution centre inRedbank, Queensland.^[20] In the second half of 2024, two highly-automated 87,000-square-metre (940,000 sq ft) customer fulfilment centres powered byOcado technology were opened inTruganina, Victoria andWetherill Park, New South Wales.^[21][22] A second Witron distribution centre was opened inKemps Creek, New South Wales in August 2024,^[23] and construction of a third in Truganina was announced in October 2024.^[24] In the same month, Coles deployed their fully electric prime mover truck.^[25]

Coles' original slogan was "nothing over 2/6", when it was primarily operating variety stores. The slogan "You'll find the best value is at Coles New World" was used in the 1980s. The red/orangeorb was used from 1991 to 2005, although store signs continued to use the orb up until the early 2010s. "Serving you better" was used as a slogan from 1998 to 2003, replaced by "save everyday", endorsed by actressLisa McCune. A circled tick was used as a logo device from 2003 to 2007, replacing the orb as a primary device in 2005.^{[citation needed]} "Save everyday" was later changed to the grammatically correct "save every day".^[26]

In 2007, the slogan and circle tick were discontinued with simply the Coles name used in preparation for a new red ball logo to match proposed Coles Group livery, which was shelved later in the year as the business was sold. A number of tag lines were employed in the next few years: "Something better every day", "Proudly Australian since 1914" (introduced with its TV sponsorship of the2008 Summer Olympics),^[27] "Cutting the cost of your shopping", "Quality food costs less at Coles" and "It all counts".^[28] The slogan "Good things are happening at Coles" was rolled out in 2018, and its current slogan "Value the Australian way" was employed in 2020.

In the 1960s, Coles sponsored a general knowledge quiz show,Coles £3000 Question (laterColes $6000 Question andColes $7000 Question) which aired onChannel 7.^[9]

In 2010, Coles launched a new sub-slogan, "Down Down, Prices Are Down", featuring a large red cartoon hand pointing downwards to symbolise the chain's low-price policy. The slogan incorporated the tune of "Down Down", a 1975 hit by British rockersStatus Quo.^[29]In 2011, the campaign was revised to the fit the tune ofPetula Clark's 1964 hit "Downtown".^[30] but reverted to "Down Down" later in the year.In 2012, it used Status Quo, which originally recorded the song in 1975, singing and speaking in the newest ad in the series. In February 2016, Coles updated the "Down Down" campaign again, to the tune of "That's Amore" ("it's a Down Down"). In May 2017 the "Down Down" campaign was again refreshed withAustralian Idol and reality-TV contestantCasey Donovan with a new disco version of the advertisement.^[31] This was ultimately dropped in March 2018, with Coles commercials (mostly on its in-store radio known as Coles Radio) using "Best of My Love" byThe Emotions, a hit disco song from 1977, instead.^[32]

Coles Radio is the brand name for the in-store radio station heard across all Coles' supermarkets. It is owned and operated in partnership with broadcasterNova Entertainment and adopts ahot adult contemporary format, featuring a playlist consisting of pop hits from the 1980s, '90s, 2000s and current hits. The station has one announcer, Meg Alexander, throughout the workday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The station is also available outside stores via Coles' website, theNova Player app and onDAB+ digital radio, making it accessible in many newer car models.

Coles has been accused by suppliers of using heavy-handed tactics when dealing with its suppliers.^[33] A 2004 investigation by theAustralian Competition & Consumer Commission did not result in any action being brought against Coles andWoolworths. A 2012 investigation in which suppliers were offered anonymity is believed to have uncovered unethical practices.^[34] In 2013, the ACCC was investigating both Coles and Woolworths over accusations that they used improper market practices to force down prices from suppliers.^[34] These accusations further intensified on a February 2024 episode of news programFour Corners, which exposed accusations ofprice gouging between both Coles andWoolworths Supermarkets, which form an allegedduopoly colloquially known as Colesworth.^[35]

Coles and Woolworths, the two largest supermarket chains in Australia responsible for controlling over two thirds of the market share, have recently come under fire on accusations ofprice gouging. They have also been accused of allegedly forcing suppliers to increase their supplies in order to buy goods at lower prices, during a time which the economy is at the brink of entering a recession and people are facing a cost of living crisis. In a Senate Inquiry,^[36] Greens SenatorNick McKim, the chair of the committee, highlighted that the actions of Coles and Woolworths resulted in serious harm to the people of Australia, off the profiteering these supermarket chains have done manipulating food prices. One of the key recommendations that was made in this enquiry is to ensure that price gouging will be made illegal.^[37]

A 2014Federal Court of Australia case ruled that Coles "threatened harm to suppliers if they didn't meet their demands," and ordered the chain to pay $10 million in penalties.^[38]

In 2015, the Federal Court of Australia fined Coles $2.5 million for making misleading claims in relation to the sale of its par-baked bread products.^[39]

In September 2024, theAustralian Competition and Consumer Commission brought legal action against Coles, accusing the supermarket of misleading customers on discounts through their Down Down promotions.^[40]

• 4-cents-per-litre fuel offer: When a customer spends $30 or more in a single transaction at a Coles,Bi-Lo, Pick'n'Pay orLiquorland, they receive a four-cent discount coupon on their receipt or flybuys account for use atColes Express service stations. This practice has been criticised by competition law experts who argue that people pay higher petrol and grocery prices to fund these discounts.^[41]

• Shoppers can collectflybuysloyalty program points at Coles Group businesses.
• Between 1991 and 1993, Coles Supermarkets ran a promotion in conjunction withApple Inc. and 12 major suppliers entitled "Apples for Students", where students collected grocery dockets and returned them to their participating school, and once a certain value had been reached the school would be provided with a free Macintosh computer. Seventy per cent of Australia's schools and kindergartens participated and gained more than 25,000 computers, equipment and software worth $13.6 million.^[42]
• In 2010, Coles Supermarkets ran a similar program called "Sports for Schools" which customers collected coupons to hand in to their school in exchange for sports equipment. The program was run again in 2011, 2012, 2018^{[43][full citation needed]} and 2020.^[44]
• In 2018, Coles ran a collectibles promotion called Little Shop featuring mini-sized grocery items. CompetitorWoolworths stated the success of the promotion led to reduced customer visits to its stores.^[45] Due to the success of the campaign, Coles re-invigorated the promotion with the collectables returning for the Christmas period.^[46]
• Coles actively supported the Yes case for the2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum.^[47]

Coles has severalgeneric or private label brands:

• Coles: A mid-price line, replacing the 'You'll love Coles' brand. Designed to match established branded products.
• Coles Simply: A value brand^[48]
• Coles Finest: A premium brand launched in 2006, with a small range of gourmet foods.^[49] Promoted as of greater quality than many well-known branded products and often more expensive.
• Coles Green Choice: A range of household products which claim to be environmentally responsible, with a donation being made toClean Up Australia with every one of its products sold.
• Coles Organic: A range of products grown and processed without the use of synthetic chemicals, fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides, approved by official certified organisations.
• Coles Ultra: A range of higher-end cleaning products above the smart buy range.

In the past Coles had a variety of private labels including Smart Buy, Simply Less,^[50] Simply Gluten Free,^[51] Savings, Mix,^[52] Farmland and Embassy.

• List of supermarket chains in Oceania
• Pick n Pay Stores

• Official website