Coles shoppers upset after Little Treehouse promotion ends

Coles customers are upset the supermarket called an early end to its Little Treehouse book collectables promotion.

Shoppers expressed ongoing frustration throughout the promotion as they received repeats of books they already had and struggled to complete full collections.

Now, it seems customers will be left with whatever they have collected up until this point after the retailer confirmed on Tuesday no further books would be handed out.

In posts expressing their disappointment, annoyed shoppers took to Facebook with their complaints.

“I am really disappointed in your lack of commitment to your Little Treehouse book promotion. Stores don't seem to have any left and many are saying they won't be getting more,” one wrote on Tuesday.

“My children were really enjoying collecting the books and I liked the fact that they weren't lumps of plastic. Why aren't you finishing the promotion properly?” she added.

“Finally books not plastic things and couldn't get them all,” another wrote.

• 'I couldn't open the door ': Coles delivery 'dumped' in inconvenient location

• Premier's message to Woolworths, Coles and Aldi ahead of 'challenging' period

• Woolworths shopper reveals hack that got her 30 Ooshies for just $30

The original poster claimed just two weeks into the promotion her local store had run out of books. Her upset children ended up with just a dozen books between them.

Each of the 24 mini-books were sealed in a non-transparent pack so as to hide the title until it was opened, with one book earned for every $30 spent.

Since the July 29 launch, dozens of customers have posted images of their duplicate copies to the retailer’s Facebook page, requesting the books be distributed more evenly.

In response to the uproar, Coles apologised for the disappointment and explained it had been left with no option but to finish the promotion early due to how popular it was.

“We're sorry to hear your disappointment. The Coles Little Treehouse books have been so popular with customers that we had to wrap up early, as a lot of our stores ran out much sooner than expected,” a representative for the supermarket wrote on Facebook.

They said customers who still wanted to complete their collection could do so by swapping with family or friends or exchanging them at swap groups.

Alternatively, the 24 books could be downloaded via the Coles website for free, the supermarket said.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.