40 Ooshies characters helped Woolworths dent Coles sales

40 characters were enough to dent a rival supermarket’s sales. Woolworths’ Disney Ooshies promotion, available after a $30 spend, pulled enough shoppers across to Woolworths that Coles reported a temporary sales slowdown lasting nearly four weeks. The promotion sold out about a week before its scheduled finish, turning a children’s collectable into a real test of grocery loyalty.

Why This Is Trending

Coles’ full-year results put a number on the wider supermarket story. The company said supermarket sales grew 3.7% over the year to June and momentum continued into July, before a competitor’s collectables campaign caused a short-term moderation in sales. Coles chief executive Leah Weckert said the effect was temporary and sales recovered quickly after the promotion ended.

The Ooshies were Disney, Marvel and Star Wars figurines, with one available after a $30 Woolworths spend. Shoppers did not know which of the 40 characters they had until opening the packet, encouraging swapping at home, school and organised exchange events. The Guardian reported that strong demand meant Woolworths ran out about a week before the scheduled end.

What Happened

The craze spilled well beyond supermarket aisles. Woolworths ran dedicated swap meets, while a Facebook Ooshie trading group grew by almost 2,500 members in a week to more than 45,000. Some adults also turned to online marketplaces, where rare figures were listed for hundreds or even thousands of dollars. One “ultra rare” Bullseye figurine was listed at a minimum of $750.

YouGov polling cited by The Guardian found nearly two-thirds of parents surveyed changed their shopping behaviour because of the promotion, including shopping at Woolworths more often. One in five adult collectors planned to sell Ooshies online.

What We Know So Far

Coles still delivered a strong financial year. Group sales rose 2.8% to about $45.6 billion, while statutory net profit increased 1% to $1.09 billion. The company also set aside $235 million after a Federal Court judgment relating to historical staff underpayments. Excluding significant items, underlying profit was about $1.26 billion, up roughly 13%.

Online grocery was another standout. Digital sales climbed 26.4% to $5.6 billion, helped by faster click-and-collect, expanded delivery and robot-powered fulfilment centres. In recent weeks, close to one in every six dollars spent at Coles was online, according to ABC’s coverage of the results.

Coles has also signalled it will keep using collectable promotions, but Weckert said future campaigns are likely to lean toward practical items that build longer-term loyalty rather than short bursts of demand.

Why It Matters

For Australian shoppers, the episode shows how a low-cost collectable can influence where families buy their weekly groceries. A promotion that starts as a children’s game can shift foot traffic, affect rival sales and become a loyalty tool with measurable financial consequences.

There is another side to the craze. Some schools and care centres have banned Ooshies after disputes over trading and ownership, while environmental groups have criticised the eventual waste created by the toys. Woolworths says the figures are made from 97% recycled thermoplastic rubber and has provided collection bins in some stores for recycling.

That was a part of the social etiquette of learning how to compromise and how to share.

Mortimer said children negotiating trades to complete their sets could practise compromise and sharing, showing why the phenomenon has become more than a checkout giveaway.

What Happens Next

Coles says its grocery sales returned to normal soon after the Woolworths campaign finished. The retailer is now pushing harder into online shopping, store expansion and refurbishments, with plans reported by Australian Associated Press via The Canberra Times to open around 45 new supermarkets over two years and refurbish 150 stores by June 2028.

The competitive question is what the next supermarket loyalty campaign looks like. Coles has not disclosed its next collectable offer, but Weckert said practical campaigns are likely to feature more prominently. Woolworths’ Ooshies have already demonstrated that a well-timed promotion can move customers quickly, even when the underlying supermarket business remains strong.