What is Coles supermarket?
Coles is one of Australia's two largest supermarket chains, alongside Woolworths. It was founded by George James Coles, who opened his first variety store in Collingwood, Melbourne, in 1914.
G.J. Coles modeled his first store on American discount variety stores, promising that nothing was over two shillings and sixpence. The business expanded across Australia in the following decades.
Coles began opening supermarkets in the 1960s and merged with the Myer retail group in 1985 to form Coles Myer, then the country's largest retailer.
Wesfarmers and independence
In 2007, the Western Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers bought Coles Group, which included Coles supermarkets, Kmart, Target and Officeworks. Wesfarmers spun off Coles as a separate listed company in 2018.
Coles operates more than 800 supermarkets across Australia, along with liquor stores such as Liquorland and First Choice Liquor. Its loyalty program, Flybuys, is one of the largest in Australia.
Coles' advertising campaigns have included the famous Down Down price promotions featuring a giant red hand. The company, like Woolworths, faced inquiries into supermarket pricing practices in 2024, as cost of living pressures grew.
Did You Know?
Coles is headquartered in Hawthorn East in Melbourne.