The Co-op news and analysis – Page 103
-
News
Count on Somerfield for cereals
Breakfast cereal suppliers’ margins will have been hurt by an intensification of price and promotional-based activity that took place last year.Cereals is one of the biggest categories in store, reflecting a high market penetration and diverse...
-
News
Londis bidding war opens
The bidding war for Londis has begun in earnest after the symbol group’s board unanimously decided that selling out to a bigger player was the best way to safeguard the future of its retailers.Big Food Group, Musgrave, Somerfield, the ...
-
News
Press round-up…ex-Somerfield chief on the move
Former Somerfield chief executive Alan Smith could be in line to head up high street hardware chain Robert Dyas.The Financial Times reported that Change Capital, a private equity firm set up last year by Marks and Spencer chairman Luc...
-
News
OS&G divi goes super
Oxford, Swindon & Gloucester Co-op is relaunching its dividend with the introduction of a superdividend card.Customers will no longer receive dividends as point of sale discounts but as points earned on the card. Shoppers earn points on the...
-
News
Somerfield’s HR director will head up business unit
Katie Peters, Somerfield Group’s human resources director, is to replace Bill Williams as head of the Somerfield business unit.Peters, who is already a member of the group executive committee, will take up her new post on February 16, reporting...
-
News
Six of the best household goods buyers
>>nominated this month: Tesco, somerfield, Morrisons, ASDA, sainsbury, makroMike ArnottSenior buying manager, household, tescoArnott joined Tesco in 1995 to work in product marketing for two years. He then moved into...
-
News
Scotmid hits 76
Scotmid Co-op has boosted its presence in the Edinburgh area with the acquisition of eight former Alldays stores from the Co-operative Group.The deal takes its food retail estate to 76 stores, although overlap with its existing estate meant...
-
News
Somerfield’s franchise deal
Somerfield is to unveil full details of its franchise package at the Convenience Retailing Show at the NEC, Birmingham, from March 14 to 17.Somerfield’s business director for franchise, Norman Kears, has been developing the package since he...
-
News
Somerfield in franchisee talks
Somerfield is in talks with a number of independents about the roll-out of its new franchise package after a successful joint venture with TM Retail. Group finance director Steve Back said: “We’re not looking for franchisees with 300 stores but...
-
News
Marston holding the fort for Lewis
Somerfield has appointed regional director Roger Marston as temporary retail director, with responsibility for all Somerfield store formats.He will replace Tina Lewis who begins a period of six months’ maternity leave on February 1.He...
-
News
Co-op wins right to pursue ICL
The Co-operative Group has won the right to a re-trial to pursue a multi-million pound claim against IT provider ICL.The society took ICL (now part of Fujitsu) to the Technology and Construction court in November 2001 claiming it had breached a...
-
News
Fairtrade grape first
The Co-operative Group is claiming to be the first to offer Fairtrade organic grapes to UK consumers.The fruit went on sale this week and to encourage consumers the retailer slashed the price in half, from £2.99 to £1.49.The fruit is from...
-
News
Morrisons to divest 140 smaller Safeway stores
Morrisons is set to bring in £250m by selling 140 of Safeway’s smaller convenience stores after acquiring the supermarket group last week.Weekend press reports suggest that the Big Food Group, Somerfield and German discounters Netto and Aldi...
-
News
Co-op Group puts service first
The Co-operative Group is about to embark on a massive investment programme intended to introduce a step change in customer service across its estate of 1,800 stores.Keith Brydon, general manager retail programme management, would not give a...
-
News
Spottiswoode thinks local for Somerfield
Somerfield has promoted Kieran Spottiswoode to local marketing controller to help support its £70m store refit programme and new formats roll-out.He replaces Rachel Warren, who left in August to become head of retail marketing at Oxford,...
-
News
Brand unity nears
A new brand identity for the co-operative movement will be unveiled in 2005 in a bid to give societies a more coherent and consistent public face.A Co-operative Group spokesman said the brand panel established after the Co-operative...
-
News
United Co-op bans terror pair
United Co-operatives says it has made legal history by obtaining a civil court injunction that bans two problem customers from entering its stores.The Staffordshire-based co-op, the second largest in the UK, has had Darren Boote and...
-
News
Co-op Group loses Darwin
Keith Darwin is retiring as chairman of the Co-operative Group board in May next year. A former chief executive of the Lincoln Co-operative Society, he has held the post since 2000.Bob Burlton has been elected chairman designate by the...
-
News
OTC sim cards
Virgin Mobile is seeking to turn mobile phone SIM cards into an impulse line. Spar, Menzies and the Co-operative Group stores will sell them at £9.99 each over the counter.Retailers will display them in packs of 10 in counter display units....
-
News
TM Retail is set for joint venture roll-out
Somerfield and TM Retail’s joint c-store format could be rolled out to 200 TM Retail stores following trials, said trading director Paul Baxter.The partners have seen a leap in sales as they prepare to open their seventh trial “Somerfield...