Coles Supermarkets

History

George James (G. J.) 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" at Wilmot, Tasmania until it was destroyed by a fire on 24 January 2014.) Coles itself was founded when G. J. Coles opened the 'Coles Variety Store' on 9 April 1914 on Smith Street in the Melbourne, Victoria suburb of Collingwood. 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.

In 1960, the first supermarket (trading under the Dickens name)was opened in the Melbourne suburb Balwyn North, at the corner of Burke and Doncaster Roads where a modernised version continues to operate. By 1973, Coles had established stores in all Australian capital cities. From 1962, its supermarkets were branded Coles New World with accompanying rocket imagery. In 1991, the stores were rebranded Coles Supermarkets and from 1998, simply as Coles.

"Coles".

In 2004, the liquor division office ("Coles Liquor Group"), was moved from Chullora in Sydney to the company head office in Hawthorn East, Melbourne. With Coles 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.

From mid 2006, many BI-LO supermarkets were badged as Coles Supermarkets. Newmart supermarkets, under which BI-LO traded in Western 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-defunct Action Supermarkets chain. The conversion program was put on hold at Easter 2007. On 2 July 2007, Western Australian based company Wesfarmers agreed to purchase Coles Group Limited for A$22 billion. The purchase was completed in early 2008.

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.

In February 2008, Wesfarmers appointed UK retailer Ian McLeod as managing director of Coles Supermarkets plus liquor, fuel and convenience businesses. McLeod's previously headed UK car parts and cycle retailer Halfords and gained supermarket experience with Asda and Wal-Mart.

In February 2011, Coles acquired National Australia Bank's 50 per cent interest in Australia's largest loyalty program FlyBuys, giving it 100% ownership. In September 2011, Coles commenced stocking private label clothing in their stores with several stores receiving refits to accommodate the range.

In 2014, John Durkan was appointed the new managing director.

Advertising and branding

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/orange orb was used from 1991 to 2005. "Serving you better" was used as a slogan from 1998 to 2003, replaced by "save everyday", endorsed by actress Lisa McCune. A circled tick was used as a logo device from 2003 to 2007, replacing the orb as a primary device in 2005. "Save everyday" was later changed to the grammatically-correct "save every day".

In 2007, that 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 the 2008 Summer Olympics), "Cutting the cost of your shopping", "Quality food costs less at Coles" and "It all counts". Its current slogan is "A little better every day".

In the 1960s, Coles sponsored a general knowledge quiz show, Coles £3000 Question (later Coles $6000 Question and Coles $7000 Question) which aired on Channel 7.

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 incorporates the tune of "Down Down", a 1975 hit by British rockers Status Quo. In 2011, the campaign was revised to the fit the tune of Petula Clark's 1964 hit "Downtown". 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").

Accusations of anti-competitive practices

Coles has been accused by suppliers of using heavy-handed tactics when dealing with its suppliers. A 2004 investigation by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission did not result in any action being brought against Coles and Woolworths. A 2012 investigation in which suppliers were offered anonymity is believed to have uncovered unethical practices. In 2013, the ACCC was investigating both Coles and Woolworths over accusations that they used improper market practices to force down prices from suppliers.

Legal cases

A 2014 Federal 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.

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.

Notable promotions

Private label brands

Coles has seven levels of generic or private label brands, although they plan to consolidate these into the basic Coles brand. They also have a private clothing brand.

Halal and kosher products

Coles lists its parve/halal products, by category and by brand, on its website.