Coles backflips with a twist and pike on bags
SUPERMARKET giant Coles has changed course yet again in the plastic bag ban saga, issuing a deadline on giving away reusable bags.
It was revealed this week that Coles would indefinitely be giving away the reusable bags at checkouts. Usually, they cost 15 cents each.
This was a U-turn because the free bags offer was meant to end on Wednesday.
But Coles’ CEO John Durkan yesterday emailed 115,000 staff notifying them that “indefinitely” now had a definite deadline, after the offer caused a storm among proponents of the plastic ban.
“We are extending our complimentary bag offer until Wednesday, August 29, for our customers in Qld, NSW, VIC and WA,” he said in the email.
“I appreciate this transition phase is taking longer than anticipated, but it is absolutely the right thing to do by our customers. As you would have experienced first-hand in stores, this has been a big and difficult change for many of our customers.”
Coles initially revealed it would not be handing out single-use plastic bags from July 1 in Victoria, Queensland, want action and leadership to reduce plastic pollution.”
The director of environmental group Boomerang Alliance, Jeff Angel, was pleased the saga was finally coming to an end.
“Coles have listened to the vast majority of consumers who are rightly concerned about plastic pollution,’’ he said.
“It’s a message to business and government — get on board with stopping the dreadful damage being caused by these items.”
The timing of Coles’ final removal of free bags is interesting — the offer ends on August 29, one day after the supermarket’s latest marketing campaign, Little Shop, comes to an end.
The miniature collectables have driven sales booms in supermarkets in several other countries.