Coles
Retail / supermarkets, Hawthorn East, VIC (Melbourne metro)
Coles Group Limited is an Australian retail company best known for the Coles supermarket chain, one of Australia's two largest supermarket operators. It also operates liquor retailing and financial-services businesses.
Coles was founded in 1914 in the Melbourne suburb of Collingwood by George Coles and grew into a national retailer. It was owned by Wesfarmers from 2007 until it was demerged and separately listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in November 2018. Headquartered in Melbourne, Coles operates hundreds of supermarkets, liquor stores (under brands such as Liquorland and First Choice Liquor) and the Flybuys loyalty program, employing well over 100,000 people and holding a large share of the Australian grocery market.
Fast facts
| Legal name | Coles Group Limited |
|---|---|
| Ticker | ASX: COL |
| Headquarters | Hawthorn East, VIC (Melbourne metro) |
| Founded | 1914 (demerged from Wesfarmers and ASX-listed 2018) |
| Sector | Retail / supermarkets |
| Revenue | ~A$44.6B (FY2025) |
| Employees | ~115,000 (2025) |
| CEO | Leah Weckert (Managing Director & CEO since 1 May 2023) |
| Website | colesgroup.com.au |
Key facts
- Headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Founded in 1914 in Collingwood by George Coles
- One of Australia's two largest supermarket operators
- Demerged from Wesfarmers and listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: COL) in 2018
- Employs more than 100,000 people and holds around a quarter of the Australian grocery market
Frequently asked questions
What is Coles?
When was Coles founded?
When did Coles list separately on the ASX?
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coles_Group
- https://stockanalysis.com/quote/asx/COL/company/
- https://www.colesgroup.com.au/about-us/?page=executive-leadership-team
- https://www.coles.com.au/about/who-we-are/history
- https://www.forbes.com/companies/coles-group/
Last verified 2026-07-13. Professionally-public, sourced information only.