Coles has been recognised as one of Australia’s top corporate givers in the latest Giving Large research by Strive Philanthropy.
For the fourth consecutive year, the retailer was placed number one for community contribution as a percentage of profit and number two in total community contribution, with a contribution of $152 million at 9% of pre-tax profit.
The results reflect Coles’ community contribution in FY23 which included the donation of the equivalent of 40.1 million meals to SecondBite and Foodbank, $8.6 million raised for FightMND to support Motor Neurone Disease research and $3.8 million raised for Redkite to support families facing childhood cancer.
“Coles is incredibly proud to be recognised once again as one of Australia’s top corporate givers by Strive Philanthropy,” says Coles Group General Manager Corporate & Indigenous Affairs Sally Fielke.
“Community is at the heart of what we do at Coles, whether that’s donating food to SecondBite to help feed Aussies in need, providing water and essentials to evacuation centres during natural disasters, fundraising for children’s hospitals or volunteering at local Little Athletics clubs and centres.
“This is a terrific recognition of our team members, customers and suppliers across Australia who go above and beyond each and every day to support a range of causes in their local communities.”
Strive Philanthropy’s 2023 research found that corporate Australia has continued its “positive trajectory” in corporate giving this year with a “substantial surge” in total contributions to a community in need.
The 2023 surge in corporate social investment was said to have been driven by a “larger than normal” number of leading companies who significantly increased their total investment. A record 20 out of the top 50 companies increased their contribution by more than 20% with companies from the consumer and finance sector leading the growth versus 2022.