Coles donated and delivered “three truckloads of food and essentials” to flood-affected communities in NSW last week.
According to the retailer, 44 pallets of supplies reached isolated residents in the North Richmond and Wilberforce region via boat. Another semi-trailer loaded with over 2500 boxes full of supplies arrived at Lifeline’s donation centre in Lismore.
Lismore MP Janelle Saffin was on hand to accept the load on behalf of the Lismore community and to thank the Coles team.
“It was great to visit the Lismore Showgrounds and see the fantastic work being done by Coles staff in helping distribute food to flood affected locals. A big thank you to all the Coles team,” she says.
The flood relief efforts follow Coles’ pledge to match customer donations dollar-for-dollar up to $1 million for the Australian Red Cross Queensland and NSW Floods Appeal at Coles supermarkets and Coles Express stores until 15 March.
To date, Coles says it has raised more than $350,000 from generous customers. The retailer will double the amount raised up to $1 million until tomorrow (15 March).
Other efforts
On Saturday night, Coles NSW State General Manager Ivan Slunjski announced the retailer was proud to go even bigger, donating a further $700,000 to the ‘Australia Unites: Red Cross Flood Appeal’ which aired on Channel Nine, Seven Network and Network 10.
“We could not be prouder of our team in Queensland, Lismore and the Northern Rivers,” he says.
“And to our customers, we just want to say thank you for all your patience as we’ve worked through the logistical challenges of this disaster. Our hearts go out to everyone impacted – including our own team.”
Coles’ on-the-ground efforts also include:
- A Coles Online van will be delivering 16 cartons of fruit daily over the next week and 60 loaves of bread to Lismore each day for the next two weeks
- Coles stores in the Northern NSW region have rallied to fill two utes with food and essentials donated by customers and team members for delivery to the Lismore region
- The Coles team at The Pines in south-east Queensland will distribute an estimated 25 pallets of food and essentials to impacted communities from Logan down to the Northern Rivers region
- At Coffs Harbour, the team have collected and driven a truckload of donations to West Ballina to be packed into care packs and distributed to rural areas filled with food, clothing, personal hygiene items and bedding
- The North Richmond Coles store has donated around 1000 loaves of bread to Hawkesbury’s Helping Hands to distribute to flood-affected residents
Store support
With Coles’ supermarket at Lismore “significantly affected” by the floods, the nearby Coles store at Goonellabah has remained open to support the Lismore community, receiving multiple deliveries every day to ensure that stock remains on shelves. Customers in flood-affected areas will also be able to access fresh food and other grocery items through the reopening of Coles Online delivery.
The Coles store at Goonellabah has also welcomed the Coles Lismore team, providing a temporary home where they can remain employed.
Coles Regional Manager Andrew Sneesby says every team member and customer that you talk to has been significantly impacted by the floods, and as you drive around and see the devastation you can’t not be affected by it.
“Together with our customers, suppliers and team members, we’re doing everything we can to support the community through delivering donations to where it’s needed most and ensuring that our nearby store in Goonellabah receives multiple deliveries each day to keep stock on the shelves,” he says.