Euan Sutherland had branded The Co-operative Group “ungovernable”. And you could see his point.

As the movement wrestled with proposals to reform its governance (in a report by Lord Myners) in the wake of a near-ruinous £2.5bn profits meltdown, so arcane was the structure of The Co-op Group board, none of the executives sat on it, with its decisions ratified instead by CEOs from independent co-ops and ‘member directors’. And these were then being rubber-stamped by a few hundred ‘elected members’ from regional boards. It was in their hands to vote on the changes, effectively relinquishing their 150-year control on the society.

The drastic shake-up was voted through in May, with 100% backing for the adoption of a four-point plan of reform. It was a real watershed moment, met with audible sighs of relief and even the ecclesiastical claim that voters would one day come to be known as the ‘pioneers of Angel Square’.

One thing is for sure: had the vote gone the other way, interim CEO Richard Pennycook would not have taken on the role permanently. And as Booker boss Charles Wilson said: “Richard is not just the best person to turn around The Co-op. He’s the only man who could turn around The Co-op.”