Archive of all The Co-op articles – Page 91
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Arrival of pay by finger
The Oxford, Swindon and Gloucester Co-op has announced the launch of revolutionary biometric payment technology, which will allow customers to pay for goods at the touch of a finger. The innovative technology from Pay By Touch will enable...
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Co-operative Group axes 600 HQ jobs
The Co-operative Group is to slash 600 jobs from its head office in a £50m cost-cutting and efficiency drive to counter falling sales.The move, which was announced on Thursday as The Grocer went to press, will mean just under one-fifth of its...
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Brighter future for Mace?
Mace will now be unified under one owner in England, Wales and Scotland for the first time – following Somerfield's decision on Friday to sell its interest in the c-store brand to Palmer & Harvey McLane. Somerfield bought the rights to the...
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Somerfield keeps up pace with Market Fresh openings
Somerfield has opened a new £1.1m Market Fresh store in Putney, the seventh to be built in London.Another, in Oxford, will join the growing portfolio on Wednesday (May 25), only its second Market Fresh store outside the capital, while another...
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Spar confident of recruits as two more Maces desert Somerfield
Two more Mace retailers have defected from Somerfield to Spar in Scotland, fuelling speculation of a mass exodus.Stores at Glencoe, near Fort William, and at Inverness will join Spar after handing in their notice to Somerfield. And Spar...
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Consolidating the clashing symbols
Some experts say there are too many symbol groups and that this is diluting the competitive power of the independents. Rod Addy reportsAs the major multiples and co-ops have increased their presence in the c-store sector, independent...
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Best buys might have to go
The Competition Commission could force Somerfield to sell the two Safeway stores that best fit its customer base as they give the retailer a dominant market share, according to exclusive research for The Grocer.The watchdog is probing 23 of the...
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Why OFT is eyeing acquisitions
The Office of Fair Trading has questioned 23 of the 114 Safeway compact stores acquired by Somerfield. So why have these particular stores been called in?CACI has built catchments around each of the stores and modelled local grocery...
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Somerfield sells Mace in Scotland
Somerfield is to sell its interest in the Mace wholesale business in Scotland to Palmer & Harvey McLane in a bid to focus on its core retail estate.This follows a torrid time for Mace in Scotland. In the last few weeks 10 c-stores have left...
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Second retailer goes
A second Somerfield at Mace retailer has left in as many weeks, again claiming to be fed up with the wait for the new dual-branded fascia to arrive.Innes MacDonald, who owns single Mace stores at Conon Bridge, Ross-shire and Inverness, is...
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Co-ops hungry for growth
United Co-operatives’ surprise entry into the bidding war for Somerfield could be a front for a joint co-operative bid.Although chief executive Peter Marks initially signalled he had no intention of joining any other bidding groups, United ...
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The Co-op’s fair ground
The Co-op has continued to lead the grocery market for fair trade since it launched its own-label Fair Trade chocolate bar in 2000The first own-label fair trade product hit the UK market when The Co-op launched its Fair Trade...
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Co-op names new chief executive for food retail
The Co-operative Group has moved quickly to appoint a new chief executive for food retail after Eoin McGettigan’s surprise announcement that he is leaving after three months in the job.Former joint managing director of Marks and Spencer Guy...
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We care, for peat’s sake!
The Co-operative Group is claiming to be the first major UK retailer to stock peat-free salad cress. In an effort to conserve Britain’s vanishing peat bogs, a key wildlife habitat, the retailer’s salad cress is now grown on pesticide-free cellulose...
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United’s bid: who’s in the shadows?
Is United Co-op’s Peter Marks bidding for Somerfield on behalf of several societies? And should it take heed of the lessons from Morrisons’ acquisition of Safeway? Fiona McLelland reportsUnited Co-operatives surprised everyone last...
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Co-op appoints category marketing head for drinks
The Co-operative Group has appointed Vicky Steel as category marketing manager in its beers, wines and spirits team.She will report directly to Kay Wheelton, head of category buying for the department, and will play a key role in raising...
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Sales dip at Somerfield
Somerfield revealed today that its group like-for-like sales slipped by 0.4% in the 53 weeks to end April 30 after a difficult second-half.Group sales were up 0.6% in the first half on a like-for-like basis, but fell by 1.5% in the second...
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retailers are being taken for a ride...
from Romesh Perera, Costcutter/Somerfield Essentials retailer, LondonSir; I read your story about the row between PayPoint and independent retailers over payment margins with great interest (‘PayPoint told to reconsider’, April 30,...