Central England Co-op cuts the ribbon on its new flagship £3 million site in Lichfield

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 19/11/2020


Central England Co-op has today officially opened its flagship store in Lichfield following a £3 million investment.

Chief Executive Debbie Robinson was on hand to cut the ribbon and reveal to customers and members a range of exciting new features being debuted by the retailer for the first time ever in its business.

This includes a special zero waste refill station that will allow shoppers to only buy what they need and cut down on food packaging and waste, a hot soup station for people needing to eat on the go and a free hot and cold water refill station.

Other innovations include eco-friendly fridges that reduce carbon footprint by 60% and emission free home delivery via the Snappy App, hundreds of new products such as more local suppliers than ever, self-scan checkouts, customer toilets and seating inside and outside of the store.

It will also include a range of safety features in the light of the Coronavirus pandemic such as plastic screens, a one-way system and social distancing measures.

Last month, as part of the major project, a brand-new petrol station was opened on the site as well as a redesigned car park including wider spaces, better traffic flow and improved lighting and walkways, new trees and planters, a new car wash, electric charging points for cars and a bike repair station.

Boley Park Store Manager Jamie Joyce said: “We are delighted to have been able to finally open the doors to our flagship Boley Park store and welcome members and customers to showcase all the new and exciting features for the very first time.

“This project is the biggest single investment on a retail site in Central England Co-op’s history and you only have to look around it to see that it is different from anything we have ever done before.

“We have new innovations such as our refill station to hundreds more products to give people the choice of more local suppliers or access to growing ranges such as vegan.

“We have also ensured we have all the measures in place to ensure that people visiting us can shop safe during this pandemic.

“Every single colleague at Boley Park has waited a long time and worked extremely hard to celebrate this day and we now hope that people from across Lichfield and further afield come along to take a look, see the amazing transformation and support a retailer that puts the community at the heart of everything that it does.”

The store also features a brand new internal and external design that features bespoke artwork highlighting Lichfield landmarks by local artist Chris Day. It also features a special piece of art by Lichfield City FC Girls under 12s showcasing what they felt best showcases their city.

The Boley Park Food Store will be open from 7am to 10pm, Monday to Saturday, and 10am to 4pm on Sunday.

The store will offer a wide range of products from everyday necessities to something a little more special.

This includes fresh fruit and vegetables, an in-store bakery offering breads and pastries, chilled beers and wines, fresh and frozen product, Irresistible product ranges, as well as a great selection of food to go.

It will also offer Lottery, Paypoint, Collect Plus and foreign currency, as well as a Costa Coffee machine and a free cash machine.

The store will also continue its long-term relationship with Lichfield Food Bank by having an in-store collection point for people to make donations. The retailer is marking the opening by presenting the food bank with £250 in vouchers

The £3 million project also includes a large unit that will house a gym and two further retail units.

 

Notes to editors

 

Picture caption: Store Manager Jamie Joyce opens the new Boley Park store with Chief Executive Debbie Robinson, Chief Operating Officer Tracey Orr and Board Directors Elaine Dean and Jane Avery.

Picture caption: Images showcasing the inside of the new Central England Co-op store in Boley Park, Lichfield.

Picture caption: Boley Park’s youngest customer Oliver Davies, 2, tries out one of the new kiddie trollies at the store

 

 

About Central England Co-operative

 

Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK with interests in food, funeral, floral and property investment.

 

Co-operatives have always been there for their communities; they were formed to protect them and help them flourish. 

 

Our 7,550 colleagues who serve Members and customers work hard to ensure that co-operative values, principles and spirit flow through everything we do to help support and improve our local communities.

 

Owned by hundreds of thousands of Members, we have 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. 

 

We are proud of our reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility.

 

We invest a percentage of our trading profit into local communities through our Community Dividend Fund scheme, have donated over £1.3 million to our corporate charity partner Dementia UK and also operate a pioneering food redistribution partnership with FareShare Midlands so unsold food goes to those in need.

 

Visit www.centralengland.coop for more information or follow us on Facebook or Twitter using @mycoopfood

 

Press office contacts: Rob Smyth and James Brindle

 

Phone - 01543 421390

 

Email - publicrelations@centralengland.coop