The Co-operative Group
Submitted by Garry Cronan on October 14, 2007 - 9:58am.
The Co-operative Group | Banking and Finance | Food and Agriculture | Insurance | Retailing | UK | Principles | Environment | Democracy | Principles/CSR
One of the world's largest consumer co-operative and the UK's largest commercial farming operation. It has over 3000 outlets – comprising food stores, travel, funeralcare, pharmacy, insurance and banking.
Global 300 ranking:
8Number of members:
1,500,000Member Dividend:
USD $9,800,000Number of employees:
67,882Gender Diversity:
53% of employees are femaleTurnover:
USD $: 2,147,483,647Type of Co-operative:
Consumer Co-operativeDate founded:
1863Operating Countries:
United Kingdom
Website:
Principles
The Co-operative Group is Britain’s most trusted brand
Research commissioned by the National Consumer Council and AccountAbility (a charity committed to improving businesses’ social and ethical performance) found that
The Co-operative Group was the most trusted business in the UK, with key differentiation in the areas of honesty, the environment and the treatment of employees.
The Group have been committed to responsible retailing since 1863
The Co-operative Group has been trading since 1863, when the Co operative Wholesale Society (formerly North of England Co-op Wholesale Industrial and Provident Society)
was first established. The business was an essential part of the movement which gave people the chance to join together to buy good quality produce at a fair price.
Environment
Winner of the Queen’s Award for Sustainable Development 2006-7
- 98% of The Co-operative Group’s electricity is sourced from renewable resources.
- Virtually all of their electricity is sourced from wind and water power.
- They are one of the largest purchasers of wind and water power in the world.
- They were the first retailer in the UK to power all of their outlets on wind and water power.
Wind turbines
Installed on top of the Co-operative Financial Services tower in Manchester, they provide 4% of the electricity needs of the CFS building. As the UK’s largest farmer, the Co-operative Group has installed wind turbines on its farmland supplying enough electricity for 9,000 UK homes each year.
The CIS tower
Europe’s largest vertical solar array created at cost of £5.5million. 7,244 solar photovoltaic panels, designed to convert daylight into electricity, will create 180,000 units of renewable electricity each year.
The Co-operative Recycling Centre, Manchester
The largest in-house recycling centre in the North West of England, there is capacity for over 10,000 tonnes of waste per annum. All of head office paper is turned into own-brand toilet paper sold in the Food Retail outlets. An electric-powered lorry travels between the various Group premises picking up the waste material.
Democracy
The Co-operative Group is wholly owned by 2.5 million members in 2007. Democracy is fundamental to the organisation’s success. The Co-operative Group supports
communities and offers members the opportunity to make a difference locally through The Community Fund, social initiatives, voting rights and volunteering. Members receive a
share of the profits and tell The Group what is important to them. This is done democratically through their network of member representatives.
Area Committees: members represent local committees and discuss issues on how the business can be improved and help the local community.
Regional Boards: The Regional Boards bring together representatives of the area committees. Each Regional Board helps to manage The Group’s business in their region.
National Boards: Regional representatives sit on the National Board. Collectively the National Board is responsible for determining the vision and strategy of the organisation as a whole.
