Co-op News (August 2019)

CHANNEL ISLANDS
CO-OP CELEBRATES
By Anca Voinea
This year marks a milestone anniversary for the
Channel Islands Co-operative, whose story began
with the opening of a small St Helier corner shop
in June 1919.
Now one of the largest retailers in Jersey
and Guernsey, the co-op traces its roots to the
establishment of the Jersey Co-operative Society,
which opened its first store at 41 New Street on
30 June 1919, selling confectionery and bakery
products. Two years later the society opened
another store at 24 Charing Cross.
The Jersey co-op carried on expanding the
business and acquiring new buildings until the
start of World War II, when the territory fell under
German occupation.
The Channel Islands were the only part of the
British Isles to be occupied by the Nazis during the
war. The Jersey co-operative was able to survive
the challenges faced during this period – and came
out of the war strong enough to enable payment of
a dividend of 5p and a bonus of 1p. After the war,
the Guernsey Society was established in 1947, with
its first shop at No. 2 Market Street.
At the time, both the Jersey and the Guernsey
societies were supported by a CWS supervisory
committee, which meant they were subject to
UK taxation. They decided to merge in 1955 and
registered an office in Jersey. The new Channel
Islands Co-operative Society was no longer subject
to UK taxation.
Following the merger, the society continued
to expand and venture into new sectors. Today it
spans a range of businesses, running food stores,
funeral homes, pharmacies, and healthcare
centres. It boasts 125,000 members, the equivalent
of 76% of the total population of the islands,
to whom it returned a total of £7.97m in 2019.
To celebrate its milestone anniversary, the co-op
carried out a number of activities and promotions
bringing together suppliers, customers and the
local community to showcase how it has been
making a difference over the past 100 years.
“It’s important to look back at where we’ve
come from,” says Carl Winn, head of marketing,
membership and travel.
“Many companies now have CSR policies but
this has been the backbone of the co-operative
model and what we’ve been doing for 100 years ...
We are at the heart of the community and we will
continue to be so.”