Coles has gone to great lengths to minimise the risk of losing rusted-on former Supabarn customers ahead of Wednesday's grand opening of its new Wanniassa supermarket.
Store manager, Damian Pennyfield, said extensive workshops and focus groups, known as "listening sessions", had been held ahead of the redevelopment of the store.
![Store manager Damian Pennyfield, left, and Autolyse's Mickey Gubas at the new Coles store opening at Wanniassa Shopping ...](/web/20160702090847im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/o/r/v/t/r/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gopmbv.png/1462871706751.jpg)
Coles Wanniassa, which traded as a Supabarn until early April, was the first of the three ACT stores sold to the retail giant to pass into the company's control.
It has been closed for rebranding and redevelopment for the past five weeks.
The former Kaleen Supabarn closed for redevelopment on Tuesday and will reopen as a Coles on June 1. The Canberra Centre Supabarn is due to close next Tuesday [May 17] and will reopen under the Coles banner in mid to late June.
The three ACT stores and two other Supabarn supermarkets in Five Dock and Sutherland changed hands after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission approved the sale in March.
Three other ACT Supabarn stores, at Crace, Kingston and Casey, were not sold.
Mr Pennyfield said the Wanniassa listening sessions had been very productive.
"They [participants] mentioned they'd love to see a bakery in store; they also mentioned fresh seafood so we've made sure we've always got fresh seafood; it comes from all over Australia [with some of it from] as close as Eden."
Popular former Supabarn product lines, such as sourdough bread from Braddon's Autolyse Bakery, have been retained.
Checkout arrangements and quality fruit and vegetables were also on customers' agendas.
"One of the things we had to be sure we did take on board was having enough manned checkouts and express checkouts," he said. "There needs to be a point of difference between Wanniassa and other supermarkets, making sure we don't force people through unmanned checkouts."
Mr Pennyfield said customer attitudes, which included threats by some loyalists to boycott the rebranded store when the sale was first announced, had changed markedly for the better.
"I've been able to talk to older customers, Supabarn customers, at our other Coles stores," he said.
"The sense I get is that if I go back five weeks ago there were very mixed emotions about Supabarn going. I think that's now shifted very much towards excitement over the opening. [People] can't wait to come and look."
Coles is spending about $14 million on rebranding the three former ACT Supabarns. Of the 90-plus employees manning the Wanniassa supermarket more than 80 used to work for the independent.
Mr Pennyfield, who said Wanniassa was the first new supermarket he had opened, has been with Coles for more than a decade.
Originally from Flynn, he started working on the checkout at the Jamison Coles when he was 15.
"At that point I never thought my part-time job would become a full-time career," he said.