Coles Liquor Group has decided to align all its Vintage Cellars and First Choice Liquor stores with the Liquorland brand, after a 16-week pilot program across 14 stores in South Australia, Victoria, and Queensland demonstrated increased brand awareness and customer engagement.
Liquorland first launched in Australia in 1971 and currently has 818 stores across the country, but its footprint will be increased by 25 per cent by the end of 2025, as Coles Liquor starts to convert Vintage Cellars and First Choice Liquor Markets in April. Around 160 stores will be transformed as part of the national roll out.
The company first announced it was trialling a united front for its liquor stores in September 2024, originally stating it would rebrand nine stores – with Vintage Cellars being converted to Liquorland Cellars, and First Choice Liquor Markets to become Liquorland Warehouses.
The trial run ended up changing 14 storefronts, including nine in South Australia, three Vintage Cellars stores in Victoria and two First Choice Liquor Market stores in Queensland.
Coles Liquor chief executive, Michael Courtney, said the transformation would bring together the best elements of all three brands across value, range and convenience.
“As we move towards a unified promotional strategy, we are strengthening our value proposition for customers with consistent and competitive pricing under one brand and one website,” said Courtney.
“In terms of range, we are bringing a more tailored and relevant drink selection from the three banners under one roof. This means we will be unlocking the best-selling premium drops from Vintage Cellars and great value drinks from First Choice Liquor Market, and making them more accessible to customers through Liquorland across the country.”
FY24 marked the lowest growth year in over 30 years for Coles' liquor category, as customers grappled with the increased cost of living. There has been a slight improvement in the latter half of 1H25, but remains marginal compared to its Supermarket earnings.
The new format aims to simplify the customer offer across 984 stores, by aligning product range, promotions, Flybuys loyalty program, and omnichannel service, as well as introducing Liquorland’s new Price Match Promise.
“The results of the pilot program exceeded our expectations across all measures. We were pleased to see brand awareness improve by 16 per cent and found customers visited our stores more frequently, and 30 per cent of customers who shopped at our pilot stores said they plan to shop with us more often compared to before the rebrand,” said Courtney.
“These results give us full confidence that uniting under the Liquorland brand is the way forward, not just for us as a business, but for our customers.”
The Liquorland pilot marked the beginning of the next phase in its transformation journey, which over the past five years has seen more than 670 stores revamped to the new Black & White format, aiming to create a more spacious store layout, with clearer in-store signage and a tailored range.
