Norton Canes Coop Store 1

Source: Co-op

The pair opened the first of eight new convenience stores yesterday (5 June) at Roadchef Norton Canes

Co-op Wholesale and Roadchef have begun a nationwide store rollout following the launch of their strategic partnership in April.

The pair opened the first of eight new convenience stores yesterday (5 June), at Roadchef Norton Canes. It marks the first step in a phased launch of former Spar-branded sites being converted under Co-op Wholesale’s new ‘& Co-op’ fascia identity.

The store will be known as ‘Norton Canes & Co-op’, with the new fascia identity representing a co-created retail partnership for select partners to further leverage the Co-op brand.

The new fascia will sit alongside the existing Nisa and ‘Proud to stock Co-op’ options and will launch fully to the market later in 2025.

The Norton Canes Roadchef store will feature an extensive range of Co-op’s own-brand range, including food-to-go and food-for-later products, such as pizzas and ready meals.

The site will also be serving bakery products, with the full in-store bakery range being available from the summer, and feature self-checkouts and digital innovations.

Norton Canes Coop Store 2

Source: Co-op

Norton Canes & Co-op

“Through this collaboration, Roadchef can harness the strength of our iconic Co-op brand, to deliver a truly compelling convenience offer to millions of travellers across the UK, allowing them to shoulder with the other big names on the motorway,” said Co-op Wholesale MD Katie Secretan.

“Together we’ll continue to evolve our range and formats to suit each location, drawing on our shared expertise. By leveraging insight-led recommendations and our category leadership in ‘food for now’ and ‘food for later’ missions, we’re committed to optimising the performance and relevance of every store.”

The ‘& Co-op’ concept is currently being trialled with Highland Group, a long-standing partner of the business, and both retailer and shopper analysis will be used to shape the proposition further.