About

Coles 1914 We are a proud club of current and previous team members of Coles and its associated businesses who have each been employed for 25 or more years with the business. We have over 500 registered members across SA and the NT, together with a small number of interstate participants.

The Coles SA 25 Year Club Social Group was formed in 2005 at the request of previous Coles Myer 25 Year Club members following CML’s closure of the CML managed club at the end of 2004. The Club operates externally and independently from Coles but has close ties and strong support from the company. Prior to Wesfarmers’ acquisition of the company Coles was the parent company with associated businesses including Kmart, Liquorland, Target, Officeworks etc and many current members worked in Coles or across these businesses.

The original Coles 25 Year Club was inaugurated in 1957 by the then Managing Director Edgar B Coles (later Sir) of the company “GJ Coles & Co Ltd”. At the time the company’s founder Sir George J Coles was elected as honorary President and Annual Dinners commenced for all members across Australia. At this time Sir George espoused the 25 Year Club’s intent of recognising the value of long term team members and the part they played in the development and building of the company.

One of the main features of club membership today is found in its annual dinners which continue Sir Edgar’s ambitions of providing the opportunity to:

Renew old and valued friendships
Reminisce with the many friends made over the years of service
Foster a strong camaraderie with all club members, and continue a strong bond with the company

The Club’s annual dinners which are held on the last Wednesday in February each year, are always well attended and have proven to be a wonderful experience allowing all members to catch up with colleagues, past and present, and with whom they may not otherwise have had the opportunity to.

A Committee manages the Club’s activities and is ever seeking opportunities to broaden the Club’s activities. One such activity is the creation of this website, with the aim of providing something to always keep members informed of events and activities and have that information accessible by members at any time.

So, welcome to the Coles SA 25 Year Club Social Group …….enjoy!

About Coles – The company has always been proud of the history and achievements of its people and the results they achieve. We are pleased to provide Members with a link to many historic digitised business/ social records depicting team members and their activities. Items included span 1900 -2000’s.
The records are maintained by the State Library of Victoria under the title “Records of Coles and Myer”. Other Coles records are also maintained on the website. You’ll be surprised what’s there!
Explore your history… State Library of Victoria – Records of Coles and Myer

Tony Carter
Committee Chair

With almost 50 years of service, Tony worked across 4 States and several Brands, including a role across all Wesfarmers businesses where his last position in HR / Safety Services Management ended in 2013. Commencing as an after school casual Tony became a Trainee Manager prior to appointments in Store Management and then State HR Management in both Kmart and Coles. The 25 Year Club has been a major part of Tony’s HR roles as he took on
roles assisting to set up the club’s annual dinners and administering club activities for states in which he worked. Appointed CML’s 25 Year Club State Chairman in 2000 and on the closure of the National CML 25 Year Club in 2005, he established and worked with a local committee forming the external Coles 25 Year Club SA/NT.

Bruce Trestrail
Secretary

Bruce joined Kmart at Ingle Farm in 1972 as a trainee manager initially in the garden department. Many inter and intra store transfers followed prior to a managerial appointment to Darwin in 1981. Shortly after his return to Adelaide, Bruce was transferred into Human Resources where over time he occupied various positions. In 1995 he was appointed State HR Manager at Bi Lo and 2 years later moved to Melbourne as National HR Operations Manager, also for Bi Lo. Prior to his separation in 2008, Bruce was managing the Shared Services and Payroll functions for the Coles Group consisting of some 120,000 plus employees. He returned home to Adelaide in 2015 where has become an active member of the club and committee.

Ian Duncan
Treasurer

Ian joined the company in January 1965 and spent a number of years in Variety stores both metro and country ranging from, Unley, Norwood, Mt Gambier to Naracoorte. After a stint as relieving manager Ian returned to two more Store Management placements prior to his appointment into Adelaide Office
as part of the Audit team in Aug 1972. In October 1977 he moved to Head Office in Melbourne, where he occupied various roles within Audit, Methods and Systems, Stationery and Corporate HR up until his retirement and return to Adelaide. Ian has been heavily involved with the original Coles 25 year club during his time in Melbourne contributing many hours and considerable effort behind the scenes and the SA /NT Club now benefits from his vast knowledge and participation.

Stan Jackiw
Minute Secretary

Stan joined Coles Variety division as a stockhand at Thornbury, Victoria. Following stints in country Victoria, then three years in Tasmania, he was appointed Store Manager in Warracknabeal (Western Victoria). Shortly after a transfer to the Supermarket division, followed by various state office postings and management, then a transfer to South Australia, where he was involved in Store Openings and State Office positions. Having spent a number of years as Store Manager, Stan has a special affinity with the Gawler Supermarket, together with the staff and community where they were an important part of his success.

Connie Corbo
Member

Connie started with Coles Allenby Gardens (Welland) in August 1966 as a Deli Assistant and was promoted to Deli Manager the same year. She transfered to Findon in 1969 and in 1974 replaced her full time work for a part time role in night fill whilst raising her 3 children. Returning to full time Deli Management in 1986, Connie was based at West Lakes for 12 years before transfering to Port Adelaide and an appointment shortly after as Bakery Manager. Over the next period of time she managed Bakery in stores like Burnside & West lakes just to name a few. Connie also spent 12 months as Bakery Regional Dept. Manager for S.A. & N.T before returning back to stores and retiring in December 2014.

Carol Reese
Member

Carol is a long standing 25 Year Club member and dedicated member of the committee. In 1947 she joined GJ Coles at store 23 Rundle Street, Adelaide, which was the major source of recruitment for the whole state network of stores and State Office. Carol was known for her great administrative skills and was promoted to a role in Personnel Administration at the old Hardy’s Road, Underdale site and then into HR Administration at the new State Offices at Gepps Cross in the late 1980’s.

Robyn Casey
Member

Robyn joined Ezywalkin Shoes (which was owned by Coles Myer) in Rundle Mall in 1983 as a casual Sales Assistant. She worked in various Ezywalkin Shoes stores across Adelaide before transferring to Coles State Office at Gepps Cross in 1985 undertaking various administration positions. During her time in the State Office Robyn began working in Human Resources for Coles which eventually lead to a transfer to Head Office in Melbourne in 1998. Robyn spent 20 years living in Melbourne and undertaking various HR Positions including National HR Services Manager for Coles Supermarkets. Robyn left the business in 2015 and returned home to Adelaide in 2018 where she became a member of the 25 year club and is a welcome addition to the committee.

About the Coles SA 25 Year Club Social Group