Hundreds of shoppers flooded a Melbourne shopping centre for the grand opening of the centre’s new Coles.
Dramatic photos and footage taken at Highpoint in Melbourne’s west on Friday shows a huge swell of people bursting through the supermarket’s doors.
It’s believed the large turnout to the 9am opening was down to a promotion that saw the first 100 Coles customers receive a “free Christmas gift bag”.
However social media users were quick to blast the “chaotic” scenes after crowds began queuing up at 6.30am to get their hands on the goodie bag which reportedly included mince pies and chocolate.
Coles said it was “overwhelmed” by the shoppers response to the new store opening but stressed the giveaway “spread Christmas cheer”.
“We’ve been overwhelmed by the response from our customers to Coles’ arrival at Highpoint,” a spokesperson told news.com.au.
“Our state-of-the-art supermarket officially opened on Friday 16 December with eager shoppers waiting for the doors to open.
“To celebrate the opening, the Coles Highpoint team handed out Christmas gift bags containing fruit mince pies and festive chocolates to the first 100 customers through the doors.”
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But despite the retailer’s positive outlook, many customers were unhappy with how the huge crowd was managed.
“The opening of your New Highpoint store in Maribyrnong Vic was disgusting! So many lovely customers were lined up orderly for hours and when the time came to walk in – it was a massive push around – while all your staff and publicity people stood around just watched,” one woman wrote on Facebook.
“The grand opening of Highpoint was chaotic,” another lamented.
As one raged: “Some arrived at 7am and were in the line as directed, these folks had about 20 customers in front of them, and still missed out on the advertised free Coles bag for the first 100 customers. The allowed stampede an absolute disgrace, crowd control non existent.”
Despite the wild opening scenes, others have praised the “bougie” new Coles store, stating it is “large and spacious”.
The new Coles Highpoint includes a frozen dessert bar complete with Mochi and macarons, as well as a “squeeze your own orange juice” machine and a “scoop and weigh” pet treat bar.
There’s also an open-front bakery with fresh flatbread, sourdough, patisseries and celebration cakes, plus a selection of Coles’ ready-made meals, sandwiches and salads.
The store also includes a connecting Liquorland and a Click & Collect option for those on the go.
Highpoint has been undergoing a major transformation as part of a 30-year plan to rejuvenate the precinct to create a space containing a mixture of residential and commercial uses as well as community facilities.
Coles is latest major retailer to open its doors at Highpoint with other new additions including
MECCA’s first ever MECCA Aesthetica, IKEA Australia’s brand-new format IKEA Plan and Order Point, one-stop toy shop Toymate, Kmart, and an expanded new-look Kathmandu.
Coles said its newest store has “provided an employment boost for the local area just in time for the busy Christmas rush, creating 130 new jobs”.