The Australian supermarket chain founded in 1914 in Collingwood, Victoria, is Coles.
George Coles opened the first Coles Variety Store on 9 April 1914 on Smith Street in Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne. The business began as a variety retailer rather than a modern supermarket, selling a broad assortment of household and everyday goods while emphasizing value for shoppers.
Coles expanded through the twentieth century and moved increasingly into food retailing. It acquired grocery businesses including John Connell Dickins stores in 1958 and Matthews Thompson stores in 1960. The first supermarket associated with the group opened in Balwyn North in 1960, and the Coles New World branding became prominent during the following decade.
Woolworths is the most common answer people confuse with Coles because the two are Australia’s best-known supermarket rivals. IGA is a network of independently owned stores, while Aldi is a German-founded international discount chain. Coles is now the flagship supermarket business of Coles Group, which was separated from Wesfarmers and relisted as an independent company in 2018.