Coles announces major change to shopping experience

Coles is looking to transform your shopping experience as they launch coles&co – a new way to find specials on products and exclusive content including new products, tips and recipes.

Coles Group CEO Steven Cain said, "With COVID-19, we’ve really seen a shift to online shopping in the last few months, as lots of our customers try our contactless home delivery and Click&Collect services for the first time.

"We’ve also seen an increase of more than 50 [per cent] in readership for our digital catalogue since March,” he added.

"We are living at a time of unprecedented societal change, including a surge in the diversity of consumer tastes and dietary needs. As customers add more fresh food to their diet they’re shopping more often, and their appetite for immediacy and digital information means a weekly, one-size-fits-all, catalogue in their letterbox is no longer as relevant for them as it once was.

"We’re using our digital capabilities to replace it with something more personalised. As we add new features, this could include recipes that change daily rather than weekly, as well as tailored content on food and drink trends.

"We will be investing more in digital content and capability for customers and suppliers, as well as better value by lowering the cost of breakfast, lunch and dinner, and improving our sustainability by reducing our reliance on paper.”

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The new coles&co will feature "shoppable" specials, which will allow customers to do their shopping from their screen. You can tap a product to add to your basket, then check out online, or you could even save it as a shopping list to take with you inshore.

Coles chefs and contributors including Curtis Stone will share new content daily, including tips and tricks to help users make the most of their fresh produce as well as recipes with the aim to help customers eat healthily while also saving money.

Customers will have access to coles&co from Thursday via the Coles website. There they can also find previews of weekly specials, many of which will be half price.

From September 9, Coles will also stop production of printed catalogues which go to letterboxes, and instead will shift to digital communications.

“Since 2000 we have delivered around 200 billion pages of weekly catalogues to letterboxes across Australia,” Steven said.

He added the company would save over 10,000 tonnes of paper every year by stopping the production of paper catalogues.

“We’re committed to being Australia’s most sustainable supermarket, and reducing our reliance on paper by prioritising digital channels like coles&co is a significant step towards that goal."

Printed weekly catalogues will still be available in store, however, there will be significantly less.

It comes after the store launched its Best Buys with Coles General Manager for Health & Home Jonathan Torr saying in a statement that Coles is always looking for ways to "add some sparkle" to customers' shopping experience.

“We have introduced Coles Best Buys to add some sparkle to the shopping experience as well as provide convenient and affordable options to our customers,” he said.

Other retailers make the switch to digital

Michael Hill jewellers have also announced a new online offering allowing customers a new way to explore and shop for jewellery from home.

The retailer said, "It’s an important move to further align with the changing customer journey."

Michael Hill has now launched free ‘Virtual Personal Jeweller’ sessions and a ‘Virtual Ring Try-On’ functionality via its website using augmented reality.

Vanessa Brennan, Chief Brand & Strategy Officer, says, “We’re always looking for unique and exciting ways to engage and connect with our Michael Hill community. Choosing jewellery is so personal and we want to provide the highest quality customer service at every touchpoint – whether it be digitally or in-store.”

These new virtual offerings are available across mobile and desktop and since launching in July, there has been over 22,000 customers utilise the ‘Virtual Ring Try-On’ feature and over 200 ‘Virtual Personal Jewellery’ appointments made.

If you're after a little more help, you may prefer the Virtual Personal Jeweller option, a free appointment with a Michael Hill expert advisor who is on-hand to answer questions, recommend items, provide styling workshops and make choosing the perfect piece seamless as possible.

Consultants who speak Mandarin, Hindi, Taiwanese, Punjabi and more are also available.

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