page_title: Co-op Food
section_title: Operations
hierarchical_section_title: Co-op Food / Operations
caption_attribution_description: Opened April 1995
context_page_description: Co-op Food, previously trading as The Co-operative Food, is a brand devised for the food retail business of the consumer co-operative movement in the United Kingdom. The brand is used by over 15 different co-operative societies which operate over 4,000 shops, and does not represent one single food retail business. The successor to Co-op Welcome and a range of regional formats, the latest version of the brand was introduced in 2016 with a significant advertising campaign. Customers of many of the larger UK co-operative societies can earn an annual share of the profits at any "Co-operative" branded shop in proportion to purchases through The Co-operative Membership scheme.
  In 2016, The Co-operative Food accounted for approximately 6.6% of the UK groceries market and was the winner of "convenience retailer of the year" at the 2016 Retail Industry Awards. At the time the Co-operative Group was expanding with the aim of creating 1,500 new jobs and opening 100 new shops.
context_section_description: Whilst the UK co-operative sector's market share of food retail has diminished from a peak of 30% in the 1950s to just 6.4% today, the largest business in the UK co-operative movement - The Co-operative Group - and is now the sixth largest food retailer in the United Kingdom. 
  In March 2009, The Co-operative Group acquired the Somerfield supermarket retailer for £1.57bn from a group of private equity investors. The Somerfield Head Office in Bristol, England was subsequently closed and the grocery stores were either sold to rivals or integrated into its own Co-op Food division. In 2016, The Co-operative Group sold 298 smaller convenience stores to rival McColls Retail Group to raise £117m to re-invest into its core food retail business.
  The "Co-op" brand is used by over 3,500 shops owned by the various societies which make up the co-operative movement, including the Central England Co-operative and the Midcounties Co-operative, but the brand is most associated with The Co-operative Group as it operates significantly the largest number of shops. A number of co-operative societies including Scotmid and the Lincolnshire Co-operative do not use the standard brand, preferring instead to use the 1992 'cloverleaf version' of The Co-operative brand. In 2016, The Co-operative Group reverted to the use of its 1968 Co-op cloverleaf branding.
  Co-op shops are of various sizes incorporating convenience shops and supermarkets, and the brand has the biggest geographical spread of any retailer, with a shop in every postal region of the UK. The vast majority of products sold in "Co-op Food" shops are sourced collectively through the Co-operative Retail Trading Group although stocking decisions and pricing are determined by the individual businesses. The Co-operative Group, which manages the 'Retail Trading Group' took the decision not to compete head-on with the Big Four supermarket multiples purely on price in a market that was becoming ever more competitive. The co-operative movement has largely decided to concentrate instead on smaller convenience shops in local communities and also to market the "co-operative difference" and the ethical stance that the Retail Trading Group has taken on sourcing, having long been a supporter of Fairtrade, renewable energy and higher animal welfare standards.
caption: Co-op supermarket in Kirton, Lincolnshire in 1995.
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