Quiet hour expands nationwide to help shoppers
Quiet Hour will now be offered in 173 Coles stores - including an additional 56 stores in New South Wales, 27 stores in Queensland and 20 stores in Western Australia - every Tuesday between 10:30-11:30am.
10 September 2018
Coles more than doubles the number of stores offering low-sensory shopping
From tomorrow, Coles will introduce its low-sensory Quiet Hour experience to an additional 103 supermarkets across Australia to provide a more inclusive shopping environment for all customers.
Quiet Hour promotes reduced noise, lighting and distractions instore, making it easier for customers who find it challenging to shop in a heightened sensory environment.
Coles Managing Director John Durkan said Coles was rolling out Quiet Hour to more stores across Australia based on overwhelmingly positive customer feedback.
“We’ve listened to our customers, and our store teams have worked hard to make our stores more welcoming and responsive to the needs of the local communities in which we operate,” Mr Durkan said.
“We initially started with 70 Quiet Hour stores across the country, and now we’re thrilled to be more than doubling this figure to make Quiet Hour more accessible for our customers and help make a difference to their shopping experience at Coles.”
In August 2017, Coles partnered with Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) to trial Quiet Hour at two Victorian stores (Ringwood and Balwyn East) to support customers who are, or have family members, on the autism spectrum.
From November 2017, Quiet Hour was introduced to 18 stores in Victoria, 20 in New South Wales, 14 in Queensland, six in South Australia, nine in Western Australia, one in Tasmania, the Northern Territory and ACT.
The initiative will be introduced to additional stores in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, the NT and ACT in the coming months.
During Quiet Hour, customers will notice the following changes in participating Coles supermarkets:
- Lighting will be reduced throughout the store
- Coles Radio will be switched off
- Register and scanner volumes will be reduced to the lowest level
- No trolley collections and roll cages will be removed from the shop floor
- No PA announcements *excluding in case of emergencies
- Free fruit will be offered at customer service
- Additional team members will be available to support customers during the hour
For a full list of participating stores, download the media release below.
For further information, please contact
Amila Pasanovic at Coles, 0418 664 770 or
Amila.Pasanovic@coles.com.au
Coles Media Line (03) 9829 5250 or
media.relations@coles.com.au
