Coles shopper leaves store $5000 richer: 'Shocked and shaking'

When Northern Territory mum and Flybuys member Chantel Bowden stopped off at her local Coles store to pick up groceries for dinner, she had no idea she was about to score the equivalent of $5,000.

After buying $79 worth of groceries at Coles Palmerston, Ms Bowden was stunned when she scanned her Flybuys card and instantly won one million Flybuys points. She is one of 14 lucky Flybuys members to receive the bonus points prize but had no idea it was even up for grabs.

"I was shocked and shaking. I didn't know what to do as a little message popped on the screen saying to speak to a staff member. Honestly, I thought it was a scam," Ms Bowden told Yahoo News Australia.

"I called a team member who raced off to get a manager. They came over and said 'oh yes we've been wondering when you would come in'. Confused, I asked what he was talking about." Chantel was told she had taken out the prize simply by scanning her card, but she still couldn't believe it. "I called him a liar, I didn't believe him, but they came back with this massive cardboard sign saying 'congratulations'," she said.

More bonus points on offer

Coles is rewarding 14 loyal shoppers by surprising them with one million bonus Flybuys points, while thousands more will receive either a $100 Coles supermarket voucher in the mail, a $100 Coles online voucher via email, or an email to say their Flybuys account has been topped up with 10,000 points.

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"This Christmas Coles is thanking our most loyal customers for their continuous support to our team, our suppliers and community partners over the years," Adam Heywood, Coles General Manager Customer Experience and Loyalty explained. "These customers are Flybuys members who clearly love to shop at Coles and we want to show our appreciation for their support."

Coles customer 'so lucky'

Ms Bowden says she signed up to Flybuys 13 years ago and now plans to use her one million bonus points to help her mum and grandmother pay for their groceries. Fellow Flybuys members celebrated her win on Facebook, with one writing, "OMG that is epic, congratulations! The best timing ever in the lead up to Xmas! Happy spending."

"Awesome! Congratulations! My parents were rewarded with one million Flybuys earlier this year so I know the excitement," another shopper wrote. "They spend it on groceries and the grandkids. So as pensioners it's helped them out this year."

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