We’ve been proudly serving Australian communities since 1914 and have grown to become a top 30-listed company on the ASX with a portfolio of iconic homegrown brands. At the heart of our continued success is over 115,000 team members working across the country, all contributing to bringing our customers smiles. You’ll not only get to see your work make a difference, you’ll be part of a team working together to help Australians eat and live better every day.
Our Commercial team is a large, but a close-knit group of trading experts, who are ready to shape the future of Coles. We pride ourselves on the long-lasting supplier relationships we build, the new ideas we develop and how passionately we work to help Australian eat and live better every day. And the best part? We’re all so different. We bring diversity of thought, backgrounds, and experience to every Business Unit across Coles Supermarkets and Liquor.
We have a rare and exciting fixed-term opportunity for a Senior Development Chef to join our Own Brand team. This role is perfect for a chef-trained culinary professional who loves food, flavour and innovation — but is ready to apply their expertise beyond a traditional restaurant or catering kitchen.
Working closely with product developers, technologists, suppliers and internal stakeholders, you’ll help create products that are delicious, commercially viable and consistently deliverable at scale.
We’re looking for someone who can combine strong cooking capability with curiosity, collaboration, presentation skills and the ability to work within a large, fast-moving organisation.
What you’ll be doing
Reporting to the Lead Sensory & Development Chef, you’ll work in a fast-paced development kitchen environment and partner closely with teams across Own Brand.
You’ll be responsible for:
Creating, refining and improving recipes across Own Brand ranges, including the Finest range of ready meals.
Developing inspiring back-of-pack recipes for new and existing product varieties.
Translating food trends, dietary trends and customer insights into new product ideas.
Partnering with suppliers to adapt recipes for production while maintaining flavour, texture, appearance and quality.
Supporting product developers with culinary feedback to enhance taste, texture and overall eating experience.
Participating in blind tastings, product reviews and sensory sign-off to ensure products meet Own Brand guidelines.
Helping ensure factory processes can replicate recipes consistently and efficiently.
Leading engaging food masterclasses to educate, inspire and bring culinary trends to life for internal teams.
Supporting the creation and delivery of high-quality internal and external food events, including large-scale showcases.
You’re a chef-trained culinary professional with strong hands-on cooking skills, a creative mindset and the confidence to work with a broad range of stakeholders.
You may come from a restaurant, catering, cooking school, product development or food innovation background — but what matters most is your ability to combine culinary credibility with commercial thinking.
You’ll bring:
Around 10 years’ experience in a professional culinary environment, ideally within a reputable restaurant, large catering company, food business or similar.
Experience in product or recipe development, or a genuine appetite to learn.
Confidence presenting food concepts, running live cooking demonstrations or facilitating masterclass-style sessions.
Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work with product developers, technologists, suppliers and internal stakeholders.
Resilience, adaptability and the ability to pivot when project scope or business priorities change.
Good computer skills, including confidence using Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel.
Intermediate Food Safety Certificate.
A culinary qualification or cooking school background would be ideal, but is not mandatory.
Please note, applications for this role will close on June 11th, 2026.
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We’re continuing to build a gender equitable team, and a culture that is just as diverse, inclusive and welcoming as the communities we serve. We are committed to creating a workplace that is safe and respectful for our team. We encourage applications from people of all ages, cultures (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples), abilities, sexual orientation and gender identities.
We’re happy to adjust our recruitment process to support candidates with disability. For further information and additional contact details visit the ‘Our Recruitment Process’ section of our careers site or email inclusionrecruitment@coles.com.au
Job ID: 186463
Employment Type: Full time
Coles is one of Australia’s leading retailers, with an extensive footprint of over 1,800 retail outlets nationally. We employ more than 115,000 team members, engage with more than 8,000 suppliers, and we welcome millions of customers through our store network and digital platforms every week.
We are one of Australia’s largest employers and our workforce includes in store, corporate, manufacturing, distribution, and fulfilment. Our team members reflect the diverse communities in which we operate and we strive to make Coles a great place to work.
• Our vision is to become the most trusted retailer in Australia and grow long-term shareholder value.
• Our purpose is Helping Australians eat and live better every day.
• Our priority is to provide leading food, drink, and home solutions that are delicious, sustainable, and healthy for our customers every day, both in-store and online.
