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Tag: Coles

  • Coles opens its first automated distribution centre in Redbank, Queensland

    Coles opens its first automated distribution centre in Redbank, Queensland

    The first Australian Automated Distribution Centre (ADC) using global leading Witron technology is the largest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese MP, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk MP, Coles Group Chairman James Graham, and Coles Group CEO Steven Cain are officially opening the ADC at Goodman’s Redbank Motorway Estate in Queensland this morning.

    This is the first of two Witron facilities to open here and comes after Coles Group’s biggest investment into technology in the company’s 109-year history. More than one billion dollars is being invested – with the second ADC opening in Kemps Creek, NSW in 2024.

    The ADCs are designed to create safer and more sustainable outcomes for team members and suppliers and better on-shelf availability for customers.

    The state-of-the-art facility in Redbank is located 30 kilometers southwest of Brisbane and will service 219 Coles supermarkets in Queensland and Northern New South Wales, as far north as Port Douglas and as far south as Laurieton in NSW.

    When operating at full capacity, the site can process up to four million cases per week, the equivalent of 32 million units sold in stores.   For a year, this is around 1.6 billion sales units.

    Chief Executive Officer Steven Cain said today is one of the most significant moments since Coles was founded in 1914 and five years in the making.

    “Modernising our operations is how we improve efficiency and availability in our stores and deliver higher service levels for our customers, team members and suppliers,” Mr. Cain said.

    “Our new ADCs can process twice the number of cases and hold twice the number of pallets compared to one of our current DCs. The ADCs enable us to reduce our total footprint, leading to a more productive and sustainable business model.”

    “Over 90 percent of the cases processed in these automated distribution centres will be processed fully by automation or ergonomically which will be a step-change for the safety of our team as it eliminates almost 18 million kilograms of manual handling in the supply chain each week once the ADC is running close to full capacity.”

    Coles Group Chairman James Graham AM said he would like to thank all those involved for their dedication to this very important project.

    “I’m proud of our team, partners and suppliers who’ve worked together for over five years to create this state-of-the-art facility. Over 3,000 people came together, contributing more than 2.5 million work hours to plan and design the facility, construct the building and install and commission the automation,” Mr Graham said.

    The Redbank ADC has LED and sensor lighting to reduce energy consumption and is fitted with a 180,000 litres of harvested rainwater storage for toilet flushing and landscape irrigation. There are plans for 3.5-megawatt solar installation, which will be among the largest rooftop solar solutions in the Coles network. To minimise food waste, the edible food that can’t be sold in the ADC will be donated to Coles community partner SecondBite.

    The Hon. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese MP said this world-leading technology will help advance supermarket supply chains.

    “This technology is not only a first for Australia, but also a win for the state of Queensland.  As we’ve seen during the pandemic and natural disasters, resilient supply chains are essential to feeding our nation and providing Australians with essential supplies,” Prime Minster Albanese said.

    “Coles is one of the biggest employers in this country and its team was pivotal in ensuring food security during challenging times. A facility like this one in Redbank shows how retailers and manufacturers can look to the future to improve the productivity, safety and sustainability of their operations for all Australians.”

    Queensland Premier the Hon. Annastacia Palaszczuk MP welcomed the significant investment in the strong Queensland economy.

    “The decision to invest in and build this Australian-first facility here in Queensland is a testament to the strength of the Queensland economy,” Premier Palaszczuk said.

    “Coles’ investment will drive productivity growth in Queensland while ensuring food security to one of the fastest growing regions in the country.”

    “It’s great to see Queensland lead the way with the arrival of world-leading technology at the Redbank Distribution Centre. The distribution centre will be powered by renewable electricity provided by Queensland’s publicly owned energy company CleanCo.”

    WITRON Logistik + Informatik CEO Helmut Prieschenk said Coles has partnered with the market leader in warehouse automation systems for major food retailers globally.

    “We have been engaged to build 93 automated distribution centres in 13 different countries, with the latest for Coles being the largest ambient system Witron has ever built,” Mr. Prieschenk said.

    “Witron will work with Coles to provide a technology focused, multi-disciplinary team for day-to-day operations, technical expertise and maintenance support.”

    Witron Founder Walter Winkler is extremely proud, that together with Coles, a powerful logistics platform has been created.

    “This ADC is for the benefit of the entire supply chain and will help the Australian grocery market by introducing the very best technology, and last but not least it creates great value to the Coles business,” Mr Winkler said.

    Coles thanks its partners and consultants Goodman Group, Richard Crookes Constructions and TMX Global for developing, building and managing the complex project to completion.

  • Coles, Uber Eats launch on-demand delivery partnership

    Coles, Uber Eats launch on-demand delivery partnership

    An expanded partnership between Coles and Uber Eats promises to make on-demand grocery delivery services available across Australia. The supermarket giant pledges to add 500 brick-and-mortar stores to the app.

    It marks a statement of intent from the incumbent grocery and rideshare players, given the recent collapse of independent competitor Milkrun and the extreme difficulty of operating an ‘instant’ delivery startup in Australia without major corporate backing.

    Coles and Uber Eats revealed the expanded partnership Thursday afternoon, declaring that products from 40 Coles stores across Melbourne are now available through the delivery app.

    The companies said hundreds of other stores would join the Uber Eats network in the coming months.

    Customers can select fresh food, pantry staples, and other household items through the app, collected from Coles stores and delivered by Uber Eats workers.

    Mirroring the US-based Instacart, shoppers can communicate with the Uber Eats worker assigned to pick and pack their orders while they are in-store, allowing them to substitute out-of-stock products.

    Coles general manager of digital Operations and ventures, Claire Pallot, said the service will provide a “fast, reliable, and affordable” alternative to in-store shopping and Coles Online deliveries, which are usually delivered the next day.

    “Customers can continue to enjoy great value and quality products they find at Coles, but with the convenience of on-demand delivery through Uber Eats,” she said.

    Lucas Groeneveld, Uber Eats’ general manager of retail for the ANZ region, said the expanded partnership aims to “meet customers’ growing desire to get (almost) anything they need delivered on-demand, and this expansion will supercharge the wide variety of groceries available on the app.”

    Coles and Uber Eats publicly revealed the partnership just two days after Milkrun, the last independent player from Australia’s instant delivery boom, declared it will cease trading due to brutal economic and capital market conditions.

    Milkrun, which launched in early 2022 with $75 million in venture capital backing, operated differently from the Coles and Uber Eats model.

    Instead of tasking gig workers with picking and packing goods from a regular retailer, Milkrun owned and operated neighborhood ‘hubs’ that served as grocery warehouses and dispatch centres.

    It also employed riders as staff, unlike the independent contractor model adopted by Uber Eats.

    Ultimately, the cost of those hubs, employee wages, and surging wholesale costs collided with the normalization of shopping habits in a post-lockdown environment and a reticence among investors to pump more funding into a business with an unclear path to profitability.

    Jackie Vullinghs, a partner at VC fund and early Milkrun investor AirTree Ventures, said Milkrun had executed an “ambitious vision” that “forced incumbents to invest in improving their offerings.”

    Coles and Uber Eats proclaiming their updated “offerings” so soon after Milkrun’s demise suggests the incumbents did indeed pay attention to on-demand delivery ventures like Milkrun, and competitors Send, Quicko, and Voly, all of which promised unprecedented convenience but struggled to find a sustainable foothold in the Australian market.

    While the partnership operates vastly differently from those startups, and the success of Instacart abroad shows the viability of some on-demand grocery services, the same cultural and economic factors contributing to Milkrun’s closure may still be felt at Coles.

    In the six months ended January 1, 2023, Coles recorded e-commerce sales of $1.4 billion, a 6.6% drop from the prior corresponding period.

    Coles attributed that drop to Australia’s shopping habits, saying the value of online orders declined “as COVID-19 behaviors normalised and some customers returned to shopping in-store.”

    As more Australians return to the workplace, or integrate out-of-home work back into their routines, the convenience of on-demand delivery will compete against the old-school utility of visiting the supermarket on the way home.

    The partnership caught the attention of the influential Transport Workers Union (TWU), representing workers across the delivery sector and gig economy.

    After declaring Milkrun failed because its employee-rider model could not compete against competitors using cheaper independent contractors, the TWU gave its conditional approval to the Coles-Uber Eats partnership.

    That is because both Coles and Uber, Uber Eats’ parent company, have signed agreements with the TWU vowing to support the rights of workers in the gig sector.

    “For the last decade we have seen major corporates and multi-nationals abuse their position at the top of the supply chain to exert downward pressure on conditions and income, with the gig economy providing one of the major channels for exploitation,” TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said Thursday.

    “For the first time, there is now a genuine, constructive opportunity to turn that around and build better working conditions.”

    Coles in 2019 signed an agreement asserting the “right to annual leave, fair rates, superannuation, safe working conditions and union representation” for workers in the on-demand economy.

    A broader charter arrived in 2020, with Coles CEO Matt Swindells declaring the business and the union have shared priorities.

    “We have a common goal of improving safety through the transport supply chain, and by taking a collaborative approach, we will be even more effective in achieving safer outcomes that benefit everyone,” Swindells said.

    Separately, a 2022 deal struck between Uber and the TWU affirmed their joint support for an independent body capable of setting minimum earnings, benefits, and conditions for platform workers.

    Given those agreements, Kaine described the Coles-Uber Eats partnership as “a potential breakthrough for embedding decency at the heart of on-demand work.

    “A major company like Coles would only take this step because it was confident that core industry standards will be upheld.”

    Even so, the union says it will keep close tabs on what promises to be the most significant expansion of Australian on-demand delivery services to date.

    “We will monitor this hawkishly to make sure it lives up to its potential,” Kaine said.

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  • Coles’ profit up, but inflation expected to dull second-half

    Coles’ profit up, but inflation expected to dull second-half

    In its first half, Coles has overcome supply-chain challenges and inflationary pressures to record a 17.1 percent lift in tax-paid profit.

    For the 27 weeks to January 1, sales from continuing and discontinued operations reached $21.4 billion – up 4 percent – while tax-paid profit rose to $643 million.

    Supermarket sales reached $18.85 billion, up 4.6 percent, which the company says was supported by the retailer’s ‘Locked’ and ‘Dropped & Locked’ value campaigns.

    With consumer shopping behavior beginning to normalize post-Covid during the half, online sales dipped 6.6 percent to $1.4 billion. Severe flooding and cool weather conditions resulted in availability challenges during the half across fresh and frozen produce categories.

    Supermarket inflation peaked at 7.7 percent in the second quarter, increasing from 7.1 percent in the first quarter.

    Coles’ liquor division sales fell 2.4 percent to $1.95 billion as the business cycled 15 weeks of Covid-related on-premise closures and restrictions in the previous corresponding period across NSW, Victoria, and the ACT. Store closures from flooding in the eastern seaboard, a wet and cool spring, and the summer’s start affected sales in the first half. Online liquor sales grew 13.7 percent.

    Liquorland continues to be the strongest-performing banner while express delivery was expanded to 560 stores.

    The fuel and convenience business – which has been sold to Viva Energy – earned $607 million, up 5 per cent, driven by growth in the food-to-go category, particularly of coffee and fast food.

    “We are well positioned to navigate the current macro environment and as we look to the future, we expect improving availability, population growth and moderation in out-of-home dining, which has been elevated post-Covid to positively impact the business and provide further opportunities for growth,” Coles said in a statement.

    The business expects inflation to moderate in the second half and farm-related availability to improve.

    Meanwhile, Leah Weckert has been named Coles’ new MD and CEO as outgoing CEO Steven Cain, announced his retirement. He will step down in May.

    Weckert has been a senior member of the executive leadership team since the demerger of Coles from Wesfarmers in 2018. She has also held several leading positions within the group including chief executive of commercial and express, CFO, people and culture director and state GM of Victorian supermarkets.

    Cain said: “I would like to thank the Coles board, team and our many partners for their support, insights and resilience – particularly during Covid, bushfires and floods. I would like to congratulate Leah on becoming my successor and I wish Coles continued success, and know that the best is yet to come.”

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  • Coles “drops and locks” price of essentials until Easter

    Coles “drops and locks” price of essentials until Easter

    Australia’s major supermarket chains have dropped prices on hundreds of products as the cost of living crunch continues.
    Coles announced it would “drop and lock” prices on more than 300 new items from Wednesday until April 11, after the Easter weekend.
    Brands including Kellogg’s, Kleenex, L’Oreal, Morning Fresh, Gillette, Uncle Toby’s, Four N’ Twenty, Arnott’s, Steggles, McCain, Carman’s, and Cold Power, along with a number of Coles brand products, will be included in the price lock.
    Coles chief executive of commercial and express Leah Weckert said the new price lock included double the amount of items that had been included in the supermarket’s previous one last year.
    “We understand many Aussie households are feeling the pinch following Christmas and by dropping and locking the price of hundreds of popular and essential items we are honoring our commitment to helping Aussie budgets go further,” Weckert said.
    Woolworths meanwhile said while its 2022 Price Freeze program had ended, hundreds of products were still discounted.
    “We’ve recently reduced the price of more than 300 summer grocery staples as part of our Prices Dropped campaign,” a spokesperson said.
    “We will continue reviewing each cost increase request from our suppliers case-by-case basis, working together to manage market-wide inflationary pressures sensitively.”
    Both Coles and Woolworths committed to a six-month price lockdown in the middle of last year, and grocery prices were expected to boom when that expired.
    Coles said a survey of more than 7500 customers found 82 per cent were making changes to their grocery shopping to counter the rising cost of living.
    More than half (57 per cent) were buying more discounts, cooking more at home (51 per cent) and cutting back on treats (55 per cent).
    Woolworths has said it is also committed to meeting customer needs as the cost of living crisis continues.
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  • Coles expands drone-delivery service into southeast Queensland

    Coles expands drone-delivery service into southeast Queensland

    Coles has announced it will offer drone delivery of groceries to customers’ homes in South East Queensland, with a trial set to launch next week. The supermarket chain will be the first major retailer to offer drone delivery, partnering with drone company, Wing, to launch the new service.

    From Wednesday, November 2nd, customers in the Gold Coast suburbs of Ormeau, Ormeau Hills, and Yatala will be among the first to pilot the store-to-door drone delivery model, offering grocery delivery in minutes, directly from the Coles store at Ormeau Village Shopping Centre.

    Coles says the service will gradually expand to include other nearby suburbs, delivering 500 of the most popular Coles grocery items, including bread, fresh produce, convenience meals, snacks, health care items, and household essentials.

    Coles is the first major Australian retailer to trial the new ‘store-to-door’ drone delivery model, with a dedicated fleet of Wing delivery drones to be co-located in the Coles store car park.

    Coles team members will process and pack orders, and Wing staff will load the drones and oversee operation of the delivery service.

    Coles Head of Network Development and Customer Delivery, James Geddes said Coles was proud to expand its partnership with Wing with the first-ever store-to-door drone delivery concept in Australia.

    “We are delighted to be expanding our drone delivery pilot program with Wing to our Queensland customers. The service will provide a convenient and effective way of delivering everyday essentials to our customers’ homes in a matter of minutes,” Mr Geddes said.

    “Customers can now get those urgent items they need in a hurry, delivered by drone, directly from the local Coles Ormeau Village store. Whether they’ve forgotten to pick up a loaf of bread or fresh milk during their weekly shop or are missing an ingredient for dinner-time meal prep or school lunches, they can now get those products delivered quickly, without having to drive to the store.

    “This new service reinforces our commitment to enhancing the way our customers shop with Coles by delivering anytime, anywhere, anyhow shopping, while supporting our ambition to be Australia’s most sustainable supermarket by continuing to reduce the number of trucks on the road.”

    The Coles drone delivery expansion into Queensland follows a pilot program launched in Canberra earlier this year, where Coles co-located its products at Wing’s drone delivery facility.

    Since the Canberra pilot program began in March, more than 5,000 Coles deliveries have been made through Wing, with some of the most popular items including fresh fruit, milk, bread, and eggs, along with confectionery, snacks, and cold drinks.

    As part of the expansion into South East Queensland, Wing will also soon be offering Coles items for delivery from the rooftop of Grand Plaza in Logan, Queensland, where it has been operating a drone delivery service for selected on-site businesses, for just over a year.

    Wing Australia General Manager, Simon Rossi said the company was investing in a range of pilot programs, designed to help enable drone delivery at scale, and bring delivery to more Australians.

    “We’re excited to be teaming up with Coles on this Australian first store-to-door drone delivery service, helping to expand the delivery options available to Coles customers by bringing affordable, sustainable, and fast drone delivery to the skies of South East Queensland,” Mr Rossi said.

    “Since launching our drone delivery service in Logan a few years ago, we’ve heard from customers across South East Queensland who are keen to see drone delivery expand to their region. We’re delighted that through this pilot program with Coles, for the first time, drone delivery will be available to residents in the City of Gold Coast.”

    Customers can download the Wing app (available from the App Store or Google Play), enter their address, and add items to their cart before submitting their order for fulfilment.

    Upon arrival, the drone hovers in the air and slowly lowers the package to the ground at the customer’s delivery location for a contactless delivery.

    Wing drone delivery from Coles in Ormeau will be available from 9am to 4:30pm Tuesday to Sunday.

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  • Coles expands parental leave program

    Coles expands parental leave program

    Coles is expanding the support available for current and new team members across its network who are preparing for parenthood or adjusting to being a new parent.

    The supermarket giant has removed the 12-month service eligibility period for team members to apply for parental leave, meaning primary and secondary carers can now access paid parental leave benefits without having to wait.

    Coles has also increased the paid parental leave for secondary carers from two weeks to four weeks, with access to the leave able to be taken up to 24 months after the birth, adoption, or surrogacy birth of a child. Coles will also offer flexibility of how the leave is taken, such as single days, multiple days, or blocks of days.

    Kris Webb, Chief of People and Culture at Coles, said they want to make Coles a great place to work for all team members, which means supporting them through significant life moments such as planning to welcome a new addition to their family.

    “For people who are having a child and wanting to work for Coles, we don’t want them to feel they need to wait to receive primary carers leave, because we know that this is not always possible. No one should feel they need to hold off having a family because of their job.

    “We also are pleased to be extending our secondary carers leave because we know how important it is for primary carers to have the support of their partners during these important times of their lives.  This policy applies to team members who work in our stores, our distribution centres and our store support centre, so it’s really expansive and we hope will make a big difference to our team members planning to grow their families.”

    Coles is also formalising its policy for having paid parental leave extended to primary carers who suffer a pregnancy loss (stillbirth) through birth, adoption, or surrogacy.

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  • Coles taps into carbon-negative beer with Lost Lager

    Coles taps into carbon-negative beer with Lost Lager

    An Australian-made, carbon negative beer made with unsold bread from Coles supermarkets is squaring up to some of the best-known beer brands in the country while tapping into surging customer demand for beverage makers taking tangible action on climate change.

    Lost Lager is a premium brew created in collaboration between Coles Liquor and BrewDog Australia – the Brisbane operation of Scottish carbon negative brewer.

    The packaging for Lost Lager is 99% plastic-free and any emissions BrewDog is unable to avoid through the production process are ‘double offset’ through tree planting schemes around the world.

    Coles’ research shows that one in two customers care deeply about the environment and the majority want to do more, while 50% say they have changed what they buy in response to the packaging of a product.1

    Coles Liquor Acting General Manager Customer, Trade Planning and Insights Mia Lloyd said customers frequently told Team Members in Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market stores that they wanted to support brands that were taking action on the environment.

    “Lost Lager will be hugely popular with customers given the easy-drinking style of the beer and BrewDog’s commitment to the environment and climate change,” Ms Lloyd said.

    “This is not a fleeting consumer trend, it’s a force that our customers are driving and we can already see support for brands that have moved early to embrace sustainable packaging, waste reduction or renewable power.”

    Additionally, BrewDog invests in a number of significant reforestation projects, including the Yarra Yarra Biodiversity Corridor in Western Australia. This is the only emission reduction project in Australia to be certified under the prestigious Gold Standard accreditation, a globally-recognised best practice benchmark.

    Locally, BrewDog donates the grain used in the brewing process to farmers as an alternative feedstock. Internationally, they are also the proud owner of over 9000 acres of Scottish highlands which will be home to a reforestation and peatland restoration project to sequester carbon.

    The brewer’s Australian CEO Ed Bott said the Lost Lager was a premium lager, similar in style to a German pilsner and created to deliver a craft option for Australian lager lovers.

    “Lager accounts for 90% of beer consumed in Australia, and our Lost Lager connects with the premiumisation of this broad segment of the beer market,” Mr Bott said.

    Lager has been at the forefront of beer sales growth for years. With recent consumer demand shifting towards premium lager, hospitality venues and hotels have seen growing consumption.

    As such, premium lager is one of the fastest-growing product segments in recent years, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 4.5% from 2019 to 2025.2

    “It’s still in its infancy but lager is the last bastion for craft beer and we’re confident the fresh, uncomplicated style of this beer will prove hugely popular with customers who are seeking something more from their lager,” Mr Bott said.

    “We see how engaged our Australian customers are in relation to issues such as waste and emissions reduction and while we know we can’t save the world on our own, we’re proud that we’re doing our bit here in Australia and around the globe.”

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  • Coles increases price of its own brand milk

    Coles increases price of its own brand milk

    Mr Forbes, who is a dairy farmer based at Gloucester on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, said farmers had been facing higher input prices, including for items such as diesel and fertiliser.

    “It means our profit margins have been reduced,” he said.

    “I think we were probably in a stronger position even last year … we’re certainly chasing that inflation at the moment.”

    He said floods and wet weather had also impacted farmers.

    “I think milk on the north coast is back over 20 percent at the moment to what it was last year, and we had a flood year last year as well,” he said.

    “Production throughout the whole country is being suppressed, I think we’ll see June figures probably in excess of 10 per cent, that the Australian production will be down across all states.

    “So there’s a real shortage of milk there now and huge demand for that milk.”

    Ben Geard, from Geard Family Farms in southern Tasmania is a Coles supplier, and said the jump in the price of Coles milk “was bound to happen”.

    “Milk prices for farmers have seen quite a considerable increase this year so, it was probably only inevitable that Coles and other processors are going to try to recoup their costs,” he said.

    “It’s not great for customers although milk has been undervalued for quite a while when you compare it to some of the other staples — water, soft drink, and that sort of thing.

    “We were at a dollar a litre there for some time and that ended nearly two years ago.”

    Mr Geard said “that was a good thing”.

    “$1.60 I still think that’s still pretty reasonable for a litre of milk,” he said.

    “It’s not good these prices just increasing for 12 months.”

    Mr Geard said prices needed to remain competitive with other industries if dairy farmers were going to stay in the industry.

    He said it cost a considerable amount to produce a litre of milk, with fertiliser increasing by 30–40 per cent.

    “We’ve got to use a lot of fertiliser on the grass and this time of year we’re feeling a lot of grain in the dairy to make sure we’ve got milk through the winter,” he said.

    “As good as the prices are this year there’s definitely a lot of payments going out as well.”

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  • Coles’ supersized range targets Costco shoppers

    Coles’ supersized range targets Costco shoppers

    Coles is taking a shot across the bows of warehouse retailer Costco with the launch of a range of household grocery products in supersized volumes.

    While Coles has launched the Big Pack Value range as a means of helping families reduce their grocery bills by buying in bulk, the nuanced comparison with Costco is clear in an email circulated among media announcing the new house brand.

    “Making bulk buying easy, with no memberships and no need for a destination shop, Coles’ Big Pack Value range has plenty of choice,” the cover letter said. Consumers shopping at Costco can buy bulk packs but must pay a nominal annual membership for the right to shop there and there are a limited number of Costco stores in Australia, only in major metropolitan cities.

    However, it may be just a trial by Coles, with the 44 products released under the label on sale for an unspecified “limited time”.

    Coles says the bulk deals save up to 60 percent when compared to the price of regular-size packs. Examples include a 2kg tub of Bega Peanut Butter for $16.50 which is 48 percent cheaper than 10 x 200gm jars at $3.20 each, and Obento Panko Breadcrumbs in a 1kg pack for $5 compared with $2.30 for a 200gm packet.

    Coles GM for grocery, Leanne White, said the supermarket company believes offering some of its popular products in bulk is a way to help customers save time and money on their weekly grocery shop.

    “Our Big Pack Value range is helping feed even the largest of families on a budget with significant savings on 44 family favorites in bulk sizes – everything from snacks to sauces, coffee, and dinner staples like a giant 1.32 kilo tin of Milo, a massive 2 kilo tub of peanut butter, and 18 pack of Maggi 2 Minute Noodles.”

    “Buying in bulk works really well for families who are buying the same products regularly so can stock up on their favorites at a cheaper cost overall. Some of the products can last an average family a couple of months, which means customers save time shopping in-store, while managing the family budget,” she said.

    Participating brands include Darrell Lea, Starbucks (Nestle), Smith’s, Pascall and The Natural Confectionery Co (Cadbury), Kewpie and Bega.

    The savings are calculated on the basis of comparable unit pricing.

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  • Snickers unveils Creamy Peanut Butter bar in Australia

    Snickers unveils Creamy Peanut Butter bar in Australia

    Snickers has released its limited-edition Snickers Creamy Peanut Butter bar in Australia for the first time.

    The Snickers Creamy Peanut Butter bar is made with real peanut butter, silky smooth caramel and fresh ground peanuts, enrobed in the rich Snickers chocolate.

    Mars Wrigley Australia Marketing Director Ben Hill says the variation has been a smash hit overseas, and he’s excited for Australians to finally get their hands on the product.

    “We know how much our customers love the classic Snickers bar, with its satisfying layers of nougat, caramel, and the signature peanut crunch,” he says.

    “Now, thanks to this innovation in texture, our fans can get Snickers satisfaction in both crunchy and smooth – something that is sure to delight peanut butter fans of all kinds.”

    Snickers Creamy Peanut Butter is available in a 36g twin pack for RRP $2 from leading retailers including Woolworths, Coles, Metcash, 7 Eleven, Coles Express, BP, Ampol, ALDI and Big W.

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  • Coles launches low-carb bread

    Coles launches low-carb bread

    Coles has launched a new range of low-carb bread after the demand for calorie-conscious bread surged this year. Priced at $4.80 a loaf, Coles 85 percent Lower Carb Loaf contains 21 grams of protein and 8.5 grams of fiber per serve, as well as being vegan-friendly and low in sugar.

    While it only launched in Coles supermarkets a fortnight ago it’s already gone on to become its third best-selling line in the “health bread” category.

    The multigrain loaf has got 85 percent fewer carbs than a traditional multigrain sandwich loaf and was given the tick of approval by Brisbane dietitian Leanne Ward. The bread has proved very popular with customers. Picture: Supplied.

    In a TikTok, which was sponsored by Coles, Leanne said it was “my favorite new high protein bread” and a “great option for those needing/wanting low carb and more protein and fibre”.

    As well as the Coles 85 percent Lower Carb Loaf, the supermarket has also launched a Coles Gluten Free Premiun White Loaf and Herman Brot Complete Protein Loaf exclusive to the supermarket chain.

    Demand for these “health bread” varieties has already grown by 40 percent since they were introduced.

    Coles general manager for bakery Andy Mossop said the new bread was part of the supermarket’s mission to provide new healthy options to customers.

    “At Coles, we want to sustainably feed all Australians to help them lead healthier, happier lives, and our Bakery team is constantly looking at ways we can expand our offering to cater to increasingly health-conscious Australians who are seeking healthier alternatives across the supermarket aisles,” he said.

    Brisbane dietitian Leanne Ward raved about the new bread on TikTok. Picture: TikTok/Leanne Ward.

    “Bread is a household staple and we sell more than 400 million Coles Bakery loaves and rolls from the in-store bakery each year.

    “We’ve worked hard to satisfy the increasing demand for healthier bakery products, offering a great tasting, nutritious and wholesome bread range.

    “Shoppers can feel confident they are not compromising on taste, value or convenience with these new options.”

    Earlier this year Coles announced it had reduced the salt content of its in-store bakery loaves and rolls by up to 25 percent.

    The supermarket also went viral back in July when one shopper spotted Coles was now selling white bread with 50 percent fewer carbs in its bakery section.

    TikTok user Jasmine Templin posted a video revealing how the bread had half the normal carbs and higher protein than a standard loaf of white bread, labeling it an “insane” find for those watching their caloric intake.

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  • Coles Plus adds extra benefits

    Coles Plus adds extra benefits

    Coles customers can now earn double Flybuys points on eligible products1every time they shop in Coles Supermarkets and Coles online, thanks to subscription-based service Coles Plus.

    Since launching in February, Coles Plus member numbers have grown rapidly and now Coles is offering members unlimited free delivery2, including free Same Day Delivery at select stores3, for all orders of $50 or more – down from the previous minimum of $100.

    The new offer means customers will be able to save up to $11 per home delivery in the lead up to Christmas.

    For just $19 a month, Coles Plus members also have exclusive access to a number of benefits including a Priority Customer Care line and unlimited use of Click&Collect Rapid, which allows Coles online customers to order and pick up their groceries in less than 90 minutes – a service priced at $5 per order for non-members.

    Coles General Manager Online Commercials Karen Donaldson said Coles was listening to customer feedback and responding to changing customer needs to tailor the benefits offered to Coles Plus members.

    “In the past year we’ve seen more customers adopting a hybrid approach by shopping both in-store and online, so it’s important we expand our subscription program to reward those customers in a meaningful way,” she said.

    “We continue to see significant growth in demand for online grocery shopping and we are investing in customer experience and capacity, which is having a positive impact on customer satisfaction.

    We recently launched our shoppable Coles App enabling customers to order through the app, view the catalog, or build their shopping list and then use it to map out their trip to the supermarket aisle-by-aisle.

    “By rewarding the loyalty of our digitally-engaged customers both in-store and online, it ensures Coles continues to lead anytime, anywhere, anyhow shopping.”

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  • Coles partners with brewery to make beer from excess watermelons and bread

    Coles partners with brewery to make beer from excess watermelons and bread

    One of the world’s oldest beer styles is roaring back to life thanks to a truckload of watermelons, 500 loaves of unsold bread, and a creative partnership between Coles Liquor and Melbourne-based craft beer producer Local Brewing Co.

    Local Brewing Co’s limited edition Surplus Sour Watermelon Beer, launched exclusively this week at Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market, is the first of a series of fruit sour beers made with unsold or excess fruit from Coles’ supermarket suppliers and slated to hit the shelves in the next 12 months.

    Brewed exclusively for Coles Liquor, Surplus Sour Watermelon Beer is made with three tonnes of excess melons donated by long-time Coles produce supplier Rombola Family Farms. In place of brewer’s malt, Local Brewing rescued 300 kilograms of unsold Coles bread to add to the ferment.

    The result is a light, gently fruity, and refreshing beer with a delicate tang that typifies sour beers, one of the fastest-growing craft beer styles in Australia and part of a renaissance of this easy-drinking alternative to traditional ‘bitter’ pale ales.

    Sour beers are synonymous with Belgium, where traditional sour styles such as Lambic have been brewed since early in the 18th century. However, their history can be traced back as far as 4000BC, when brewing involved little more than mixing grain and water together and allowing naturally-occurring microbes to do the rest.

    In addition to yeast, which converts carbohydrates from the grain into alcohol, the microbial population also included lactobacillus, which instead uses carbohydrates to create lactic acid – the same compound that gives sourdough bread its distinct flavor.

    While modern brewing techniques usually avoid so-called ‘wild’ bacteria by using carefully-cultivated strains of yeast to reduce the influence of sour or acidic flavors, the craft beer revolution has reignited interest in traditional styles.

    Local Brewing Co has been creating sour beers on a boutique scale for the last three years however its collaboration with Coles has significantly upscaled production. Importantly for the brewery’s founders, it has also super-charged the positive social impact of a business that was conceived as a social enterprise to help feed those in need.

    Ordinarily, Local Brewing Co contributes the equivalent of one meal from the sale of every four-pack of its beer to food rescue organization SecondBite, which works with charities across the country to help Australians in need.

    However, through this partnership with Coles, co-founder Nick Campbell said Local Brewing would contribute the equivalent of one meal for the sale of every can of its Watermelon Sour beer – four times the usual donation.

    “Our collaboration with Coles Liquor has been incredible – it’s allowed us to brew a genuinely sustainable beer and increase our social impact,” Mr Campbell said.

    “We know from the release of previous sour beers that customers embrace this genuinely unique product and it’s a great way to use food that might otherwise be wasted.

    “Every time we’ve released one of these sours in the past it has been a sell-out in just a few days, so we know customers love the story of transforming rescued food into an entirely new product.”

    Coles Liquor Merchandise General Manager Brad Gorman said the partnership would produce at least three other exclusive fruit sour beers in the next 12 months to meet the growing demand for this style of beer as well as consumer appetite for genuinely sustainable products.

    “We’re already planning new exclusive sours through partnerships with seasonal fruit suppliers in the supermarket business, which will underpin the creation of an exclusive, sustainable sour beer brand that will be unique to Coles Liquor,” Mr Gorman said.

    “Sour beers are a very strong and rapidly growing segment in craft beer and we know our customers love locally made products; it’s a key element of delivering on our ambition to be the local drinks specialist.”

    Fernando Rombola has been supplying watermelons to Coles for the past seven years, during which time he’s seen a significant increase in consumer interest in sustainable agriculture and reducing food waste.

    His company Rombola Family Farms generously donated three tonnes of excess watermelons to the Local Brewing Co, embracing the opportunity to explore an alternative, sustainable route for the fruit, which is otherwise used as compost on the farm.

    “This is super important for us – sustainability is not just about the environment, it’s financial sustainability, it’s sustainability for our people and sustainability for the land, if we are not looking after our land, how are we going to be able to reap the rewards from it?

    “For the first time in my life I had to do an ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) statement for the bank on one of our last loans, so there is a lot of interest in sustainability and it’s the right thing to do.

    “If this product is successful, we’d definitely like to see this as a different stream; the more sustainable we are, the more we can grow more with less hectares, which is what we are always trying to do.”

    Local Brewing Co has a long history with SecondBite, partnering with the food rescue group when it was first established to embed philanthropy into the foundations of its craft brewing business.

    “We are so excited that our long running partnership with Local Brewing Co is benefitting from a collaboration with Coles, who we’ve worked with for more than a decade now to end waste and end hunger in Australia,” said SecondBite Chief Executive Officer Steve Clifford.

    “The fact Local Brewing Co is able to increase its support for SecondBite through the launch of this unique sour beer is very exciting for us.

    “We couldn’t be prouder that two of our partners have collaborated to create a product that closes the loop on food waste and provides an opportunity for customers to give back with every purchase.”

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  • Coles named as most sustainable food retailer in Australia

    Coles named as most sustainable food retailer in Australia

    The supermarket has come in second in the world for its sustainability efforts.

    Coles was ranked based on its governance, environment, nutrition, and social inclusion practices, beating out of 350 of the world’s ‘most influential food retailers. Furthermore, Coles has ranked tenth in the world in the food and average manufacturing and processors category.

    The WBA found that Coles “ranked first among its retail peers in social inclusion, while landing among the top five in nutrition, and top ten across the governance and strategy, and environment measurement areas.”

    The Chief Sustainability, Property and Export Officer of Coles, Thinus Keeve, shared how the retailer aims to continue its progress to become the country’s most sustainable supermarket. “Coles’ Together to Zero and Better Together ambitions, as outlined in our Sustainability Strategy, underpin the steps we are taking to drive generational sustainability,” he said.

    “Under Together to Zero, Coles has set bold emissions and energy targets, including to be powered by 100 percent renewable energy by the end of FY25, and to deliver net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 – and we are well on the way to achieving them. We recognize the role we have to play but know that we cannot do this alone, and that we need to work together with our many stakeholders to drive positive change. We know that we are Better Together when we work together with our team members, farmers, suppliers, customers, and the communities we serve.”

    Keeve also explained that despite this impressive feat, the retailer has more work to do. “While sustainability issues are dynamic and evolving, and there is still much to do, we are committed to maintaining momentum on our sustainability journey,” he said.

  • Coles revamps health foods aisle, boosting sports and diet range

    Coles revamps health foods aisle, boosting sports and diet range

    Coles has transformed its health foods section, moving products traditionally found in the category, such as fodmap-friendly soups, gluten-free cereals, oils and nut spreads to their respective mainstream aisles.

    The revamp has provided space for more than 150 sports-performance and health products from brands like Amazonia Raw, Muscle Nation, and Botanika Blends, which join Coles’ shelves for the first time.

    These products include protein bars and custards from Muscle Nation, 20 new protein products and pure creatine from Body Science (BSC), Macro Mike’s powdered peanut butter and brownies mix, Dose & Co Marine Collagen and 180 Nutrition protein powder and bars. New health ingredients include Superfood Protein Ball Mixes from Mount Elephant and Melrose Superfood Powders and MCT Oils.

    According to Coles, the expansion of the health aisle comes as “Sports & Diet” was identified as the fastest-growing segment of the supermarket’s health food aisle between 2014 to 2019. Earlier this month, Coles revealed it had moved cereal products from the health-foods aisle into the breakfasts area.

    “Our transformed health foods aisle is a giant leap towards delivering Coles’ purpose to sustainably feed all Australians to help them lead happier and healthier lives,” said Leanne White, GM, Coles.

    “We’re seeing more and more customers look for healthier options or specific dietary requirements in the main grocery aisles – they no longer expect to go down one dedicated aisle to find these options.”

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