The Co-op – why it’s possible to have too much of a good thing

The Co-op may have caring and sustainability as part of its DNA, but the sheer breadth of possibility that brings also meant a degree of confusion among the public about what the brand stood for.

Best known as a national UK supermarket chain, the Co-op is run as a co-operative with over 4 million active members. It’s also the country’s largest funeral care provider and provides legal and financial services. And, since it was founded in the north of England in 1844, it has operated with a social purpose at its heart.

The business is aware that customers share the Co-op’s commitment to doing the right thing and ‘co-operating for a fairer world’.

“Our members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and care for others,” Sarah De Caux, the brand’s Lead...

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