Talented Central England Co-op colleague in Northamptonshire knits special store mascot to lift spirits

Posted by james brindle | Published: 04/05/2020


A new Central England Co-op colleague supporting the retailer’s Raunds store to get food and essentials to the local community has turned her creative talents to crafting a special knitted mascot to thank the team for their warm welcome.

The adorable mascot was made by 23-year-old Jess Adams, who recently joined the team at the Brook Street Central England Co-op, one of thousands of temporary colleagues recruited by the retailer in response to the surge in demand during these unprecedented times.

Jess, who graduated from a fine arts degree at the University of Northampton last year, heeded the call to support her community and said she has enjoyed the challenge.

She said: “It’s quite new to me but I have really liked it and had good fun actually. Everyone has been really welcoming.

“I saw the pattern for the mascot on Facebook as people were being asked to do them for doctors and nurses and I thought why not change it up and do it as a Central England Co-op mascot to show my appreciation to the team here.

“I like doing creative things in my spare time, but crocheting is completely new to me. I’ve been really happy to see the positive reaction it’s had, and I think it’s been a nice boost to morale.”

The mascot hasn’t got a name yet and Jess and the Brook Street team are open to suggestions for what it could be called.

People can keep up to date with what is happening in their local community by visiting a dedicated online hub at www.centralengland.coop/updates

 

Notes to editors

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, travel and property investment.

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

Our 7,900 colleagues serving our 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 430 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