Coles champions supplier excellence, quality and innovation at 2024 Supplier Partner Awards.
Coles has announced the winners of its annual Supplier Partner Awards, recognising and celebrating its valued suppliers for their dedication to providing great quality food, drinks and groceries around the country.
Announced on 17 October, the Coles’ Supplier Partner Awards event celebrates the outstanding contributions of Coles suppliers across various categories including meat, seafood and deli, fresh produce, bakery, liquor, supply chain, community champion, sustainability and e-commerce.
The Supplier Partner Awards have long been a highlight of the year, celebrating Coles’ strong partnerships and ongoing commitment to serve customers while supporting Australian farmers, producers and businesses nationwide – from Victoria’s bakery manufacturers Lantmannen and Western Australia’s meat producers MAP to national supply chain partners TMX and Accenture who were pivotal in this year’s opening of Coles’ state-of-the-art Automated Distribution Centres and Online Customer Fulfillment Centres.
The evening’s most coveted award, Product Launch of the Year, went to The Arnott’s Group, for its Tim Tam inspired by Jatz crackers. Initially launched as an April Fool’s prank, the biscuit went viral on social media and was soon turned into reality, blending two iconic Australian brands to create the sweet and salty treat of every Aussie’s dreams. It became Arnott’s most successful ‘Only at Coles’ initiative, with customers choosing with their tastebuds at the checkout and making it one of the most sought-after items.
Rock Ridge Fresh was named Fresh Supplier of the Year for its commitment to growing avocados, ensuring consistent availability of the popular produce for Coles customers. With meticulous attention to detail throughout the growing, packing and ripening process, Rock Ridge Fresh delivers fresh produce with year-round supply.
Mondelez received the Community Champion of the Year award for its outstanding support of two of Coles’ major charity partners – SecondBite and FightMND. The organisation contributed one million equivalent meals to the Coles SecondBite Christmas appeal, supporting those facing food insecurity in our communities. Additionally, Mondelez committed $250,000 to the FightMND campaign, funding research and care initiatives for Australians living with motor neurone disease.
Coles Chief Commercial Officer Anna Croft said she was delighted to honour supplier partners for their hard work and dedication throughout the year.
“We deeply value the partnerships we have with our suppliers – some that we have enjoyed for many decades,” Ms Croft said.
“Whether its across fresh food, packaged groceries, liquor or ecommerce, we are proud to work alongside such talented and devoted partners. Their creativity, expertise and commitment to the industry help deliver on our purpose to help Australians eat and live better every day.”
Additional winners of the 2024 Coles Supplier of the Year Awards are:
- New Yifa Group, which won Own Brand Supplier of the Year for working collaboratively with Coles to improve efficiencies and consistently deliver great quality and affordable products such as CUB nappies and baby wipes.
- Hewitt Foods, which won Sustainability Supplier of the Year for its commitment to sustainability through managing and investing in water conservation, prioritising renewable energy and offsetting emissions through measurable and independently verified carbon credits.
- MAP WA, which won Meat, Seafood and Deli Supplier of the Year for its investment to enhancing product shelf life, quality and freshness of Coles meat for customers, reinforcing the vital connections that support Western Australia’s vibrant food industry.
- Lantmannen, which won Bakery Supplier of the Year for consistently delivering strong service levels ensuring availability of delicious croissants and danishes, and proactively sourcing raw ingredients.
- McCain, which won Dairy, Frozen and Convenience Supplier of the Year for supporting Coles during periods of availability challenges and offering delicious, easy-to-prepare and affordable meal solutions to customers.
- TMX and Accenture, which jointly won Supply Chain Partner of the Year for their close work with the Coles team to deliver two of its largest automated projects in Coles’ history with the opening of Coles’ Automated Distribution Centres and Customer Fulfillment Centres.
- Achievers, which won Service Innovation Partner of the Year for its partnership with Coles on the delivery of Mythanks, ensuring recognition is delivered consistently to the amazing team members across the organisation.
- PepsiCo, which won Digital Commerce Partner of the Year for providing a seamless online shopping experience for customers by integrating promotional activity between Coles, Flybuys and Liquorland on one platform during seasonal events including Footy Finals and Black Friday sales.
- Hanshow Australia, which won Digital Service Partner of the Year for empowering Coles to streamline its operations, reduce errors and deliver a seamless shopping experience.
- Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, which won Grocery Supplier of the Year for achieving accelerated category growth by partnering with the Grocery team to simplify its range, deliver value to customers and execute with excellence.
- Lion, which won Liquor Supplier of the Year for its strong customer and retail media partnering and for driving initiatives to win through supply chain transformation.
- L’founders of Loyalty, which won Health and Home Supplier of the Year for delivering three customer loyalty programs this year including the much-loved Curtis Stone BBQ Collection, offering more value at the checkout and enhancing the customer experience.
