Central England Co-op colleagues working 24/7 to make Christmas special for customers

Posted by stephanie forrester | Published: 08/11/2018


Colleagues have been working day and night at Central England Co-operative’s distribution hub to ensure customers and members can shop for all their Christmas food, drink and gifts as well as everyday essentials.

Staff have been labouring around the clock at three sites in Leicester to make sure that shelves across the Society’s stores are stocked with everything from food and greetings cards to wrapping paper and Christmas crackers.

New research has revealed that a total of 14,639,462 cases of food were delivered to stores last year by 60 lorries which cover 2.7 million miles each year.

Nearly 200,000 tubs of confectionery were received for stores at the Society’s 120,000 square foot Food Distribution Centre, which were then picked, packed and transported out to 240 Central England Co-operative stores across 16 counties, as well as supplies for 54 stores for two other co-operatives.

Simultaneously, colleagues in the 42,000 sq ft Chilled Distribution Centre are now getting ready for the peak trading for chilled foods in the busy few shopping days just before Christmas.

Insight data from 2017 revealed that 16,036,673 cases of chilled food including ham joints, Christmas desserts and salads were distributed last year, along with 2,400 turkeys.

Robin Farrell, Head of Distribution and Logistics at Central England Co-operative, said: “The unwavering efforts of colleagues at our distribution centres ensure Central England Co-operative customers can enjoy a special time at Christmas.

“Planning for Christmas begins in January each year for all those involved with the distribution operation as items need to be produced in time for December.

“Christmas may come once a year, but it really is an all-year-round operation for our colleagues.”

 

Notes to editors

Picture captions: Pic 1: Colleagues at Central England Co-operative’s Food Distribution Centre ensuring customers can get all they want for Christmas. Pic 2: Nearly 200,000 tubs of confectionery were received for stores at the Society’s Food Distribution Centre.

 

About Central England Co-operative

Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK. 

It is a modern, forward-looking organisation employing over 8,000 staff, with the Society’s principal areas of activity being food, funeral services, and property investment.

Central England Co-operative has over 400 trading outlets across 16 counties including; West Midlands, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.  The Society has an ambitious food store development programme for 2018.

Central England Co-operative is proud of its reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility.  It is a member of Business in the Community, the membership organisation that stands for responsible business, and has also won many business awards for excellence.  The Society supports a number of charities including Dementia UK and invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities.

Becoming a member of Central England Co-operative offers a whole host of benefits ranging from collecting points every time you spend in store to earn a share of the profits, access to members activities and community initiatives including the Community Dividend Fund, which hands out grants of up to £5,000 to charities and good causes across the Society’s trading estate.

Find out how to become a Central England Co-operative member by calling 0800 0501 601, emailing members@centralengland.coop or visiting https://www.members.coop

For more information visit www.centralengland.coop, follow Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative

Rob Smyth at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140

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