Coles slammed online for "racist" aisle sign – but is it really?
- Replies 31
A Coles branch recently caused a stir amongst users online after a photo of one of the store's aisle signs was called out for being "racist".
Sharing on the forum site Reddit, one user uploaded a photo showing the supermarket in Melbourne categorising Asian food along with cat and dog food, which has triggered many users.
The controversial sign hung in front of aisle 10 reads: “Cat food, Dog food, Asian.”
Several users on the site called it "racist", reasoning that the store placed edible Asian items among other items that are unfit-for-human-consumption, such as dog and cat food.
A Coles supermarket was recently under fire for placing Asian food items together with pet food in a store aisle. Credit: Reddit.
Several Reddit users were baffled by the signage with one person asking, “How are these even related?”
"Three-quarters of the supermarkets I’ve been in have the same layout…" added another.
Meanwhile, other shoppers also noticed that the adjacent aisle also had a bizarre combination. Rice and other grain products were lumped in among cleaning products such as dishwashing soaps and air fresheners.
"Yup that's offensive. Seriously, why the rice is shelved along with cleaning products is beyond me," said another user (sarcastically, we think).
However, many users also pointed out that there was an entirely different reason for the rather "strange" aisle combination.
The Coles store in Melbourne might have been undergoing some sort of work, which required them to temporarily move some of the stock.
"Are they in the process of rearranging the store? My local Woolies is being updated and has a few wacky aisle combos at the moment," suggested one user.
Another agreed that it might just be an unfortunate case of oversight on the part of the supermarket. "Seems like the part of the store where they have rice and Asian food together is out of commission or being renovated," he said.
A spokesperson for Coles has also issued a statement regarding the incident.
'While the signage appears to show pet food and Asian food located next to each other, they are actually in very separate sections," they said.
"While we would typically aim to ensure special ranges, such as Asian or other international foods, are located within the grocery section. In some smaller stores or where aisles are split, they may be found in a different area."
"We'll review our in-store signage and look for other ways to make it easy for customers to navigate our stores and find the products they are looking for."
The spokesperson also reminded shoppers that the supermarket has over 800 branches across Australia, and the store layout differs on a store-by-store basis.