Matt Atkinson joins the Co-op as chief membership officer

The Co-op has appointed Matt Atkinson as chief membership officer.

Starting in January, Atkinson will oversee brand marketing, digital and data relating to membership.He will support the work of group director of community & campaigns Rufus Olins, who previously looked after membership as part of his role.

The Co-op said it had decided to split out the functions to enable Olins to concentrate on community and campaigns.

Atkinson joins the Co-op from his role as Saga CMO, where he was responsible for all marketing and multichannel commerce across its brands. There, he transformed the brand into a digital organisation and helped it enter new markets.

He has also previously worked in senior marketing and digital roles in Tesco for over six years, where he gained experience in dealing with customer data.

The appointment comes a year after the Co-op revamped its membership offering to give customers 5% back on every own-brand Co-op product or service they buy, with 1% extra going to a local good cause.

“I’m delighted to welcome Matt to our Co-op to help us on our journey to become the most loved membership business in the UK. Our new membership is now a year old and in the first half of our financial year paid back £35m to members and their local communities,” said Co-op CEO Steve Murrells.

“Matt’s experience and expertise will build on this, making membership even more compelling and returning our Co-op to a campaigning movement.”