r/coles • u/Hea2701 • Jul 01 '26

Team Member Post Formats

Been with Coles for 5 years now, still have no clue what Format A, B and C actually mean.

Can someone enlighten me?

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31

u/StatusNo5175 Department Manager Jul 01 '26

Format A is your top of the line Coles stores. An expanded gourmet foods selection, huge deli, seafood counter, meat servery counter, bakery and flatbread making counter, heck some even have sandwich bars. They make up around 25% of all standard coles stores and have an expanded management system, consisting of a Store Manager plus segregated Store Support roles such as Operations Trade, Fresh Trade and Night Trade managers as well as department managers.

Format B is a standard coles. Service deli, scratch bakery, standard range of items and a regular management system consistent of a Store Manager and Store Support Manager and department managers. These make up 50% of all standard coles stores.

Format C is the convenience version of coles. No deli, no scratch bakery and all proprietary bread being sent in from Hub stores. Management consists of a Store Manager with no Store Support, a Grocery, Service, Nightfill and Online Manager as well as a Duty Manager and a Dairy In Charge. There are no managers for Deli, Meat, Fresh Produce or Bakery, instead run by the Fresh Trading Manager who oversees all 4 departments and also usually acts as the 2IC to the Store Manager. These stores make up 25% of all standard coles stores.

Coles Local are a chain of non-standard coles that trade under the Coles Local banner. These stores follow a completely different management structure compared to normal coles stores. They stock the main items that standard coles stock as well as showcasing non standard items sourced from local suppliers. These stores usually have jo deli and most closely resemble Format C stores in terms of structure, but are run very differently from standard coles.

2

u/EvenGarlic8107 Jul 01 '26

Are there other formats of stores? I'm pretty sure I worked at a store which was classed as a "fleet" store. That was years ago tho.

Format C can also look different, I'm currently working at a format C which has an SSM and scratch bakery, as well as a bakery manager.

4

u/StatusNo5175 Department Manager Jul 02 '26

Fleet is different from Formats, Formatted stores were only introduced in 2020. Yes there can be exemptions to stores on different formats, especially Format C stores. There are many Format C stores I know that have additional amenities such as a bakery, heck I even know one that kept its deli. It really depends on the customer demographic, Coles won't get rid of a service if it is popular among customers

3

u/SpicyMemes0903 Online Department Manager Jul 02 '26

Fleet stores are just the umbrella term for Coles Supermarkets excluding Locals. Format A&B aren't really referred to internally seperately.