Co-operative Group

What Co-operative Group does

Co-operative Group is a UK-based member-owned cooperative, founded in 1844 and headquartered in Manchester, operating an integrated consumer retail and services platform across food and grocery, funeral care, insurance, and legal services. The group runs a network of over 2,500 retail stores across the United Kingdom, serving approximately 6.2 million member-owners who simultaneously act as customers and co-owners of the business, and employs more than 10,000 people. Its dedicated operating subsidiary Co-operative Group Funeral Care anchors the non-retail side of the conglomerate.

Revenue is generated primarily through direct-to-consumer transactional sales across the owned physical store network, with the 6.2 million member-owner base functioning as a recurring loyalty and community-driven revenue layer rather than a formal subscription. The go-to-market is predominantly direct-to-consumer via UK storefronts, with no publicly disclosed subscription tiers, rate cards, or platform pricing; transactions are priced at point of sale.

In April 2025 the group suffered a material Scattered Spider cyberattack that produced an estimated £285 million revenue impact, a £107 million profit hit, and an £80 million operating profit loss. The group subsequently reported an underlying operating loss of £35 million for 2025 (versus £131 million profit in the prior year) and an underlying pre-tax loss of £126 million for the year to 3 January 2026, partly reflecting an additional £150 million of costs tied to UK government employment-related policy changes. Management responded with a £200 million cost-cutting programme, a CEO transition (Shirine Khoury-Haq stepping down at the end of March 2026, with Kate Allum appointed interim CEO), and a funding round of approximately $470.5 million dated 28 May 2026.

Name

Co-operative Group

Legal name

Co-operative Group

Website

https://co-operative.coop

Company type

Private

Founded year

1844

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Co-operative Group is a UK member-owned cooperative operating 2,500+ retail stores across food, grocery, funeral care, insurance, and legal services, serving 6.2 million member-owners as customers and co-owners of the business.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Grocery Retail

NAICS

Grocery and Convenience Retailers (4451)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Member-Owned Food Cooperatives (CRAHALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Campus / Institutional Food Co-ops (University, Hospital, etc.) (CRAHALAI), Food Co-ops with Online Ordering & Pickup/Delivery (CRAHALAH)

Keywords

• Grocery retail stores
• Convenience store network
• Funeral care services
• Consumer cooperative
• Member-owned retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Manchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail sales (food and grocery): Core revenue stream generated through in-store sales across 2,500+ UK retail stores. Direct-to-consumer transactional revenue from physical store operations including grocery and convenience goods. Revenue impact of approximately £285m from the April 2025 cyber attack illustrates the scale of this stream.
2. Membership-based member-owner engagement: Revenue tied to a cooperative member-owner base of 6.2 million people who participate in the business as both customers and co-owners, providing a recurring loyalty/community-driven revenue base rather than a traditional subscription.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

Co-operative Group operates a UK-wide network of 2,500+ retail food and convenience stores serving 6.2 million member-owners, alongside a Funeral Care division providing end-of-life services. Revenue is generated through in-store sales of grocery and convenience goods and fees from funeral services, with cooperative governance and member dividends returning value to member-owners rather than external shareholders.

Product overview

The Co-operative Group is a UK consumer co-operative operating as an integrated retail-and-services platform rather than a single software product. Its core offering is a network of over 2,500 Co-op retail stores serving 6.2 million member-owners, alongside a Funeral Care sub-brand. The 2026 portfolio is shaped by a £200 million cost-cutting programme announced alongside an underlying operating loss of £35m for 2025 (reversing a £131m profit the prior year), driven by a Scattered Spider cyberattack (estimated £285m revenue and £107m profit impact) and additional costs from UK government employment changes. As a retailer rather than a software vendor, Co-op's offerings are physical-store-based rather than a platform-plus-modules software architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Co-op Retail Stores UK network of 2,500+ Co-op food and convenience retail stores serving 6.2 million member-owners and the broader UK general public for everyday grocery and convenience shopping; significantly impacted by the April 2025 Scattered Spider cyberattack.
• Co-op Funeral Care Funeral care division of the Co-operative Group, providing end-of-life funeral services to UK consumers; referenced alongside the retail business in the company's 2026 strategic and cost-cutting announcements.

Quantifiable outcome

• £285m revenue impact and £107m profit hit from April 2025 cyber attack
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• HomeCooksminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 29 January 2026HomeCooks launched its products in 10 Co-operative Group stores in Lincolnshire. The arrangement uses Co-op's physical retail footprint as the distribution channel for HomeCooks food products, representing a localised supplier-to-shelf placement within Co-op's UK store network of 2,500+ locations.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• John Lewis Partnership: UK employee-owned (John Lewis / Waitrose) partnership running Waitrose supermarkets and convenience stores. Closest structural analogue to Co-op's member-owned cooperative model and a direct grocery peer in the upmarket and convenience segment.
• Tesco: UK's largest grocery retailer with thousands of stores and a similarly broad convenience-store footprint. Directly competes with Co-op in neighbourhood grocery and convenience, and is the primary scale competitor on price and range.
• Asda: UK supermarket group (now Issa brothers / TDR Capital owned) operating a large store estate including convenience formats. Direct grocery peer with overlapping customer value proposition at the value end.
• Sainsbury's: Second-largest UK supermarket group with a significant convenience-store estate (Sainsbury's Local) that directly overlaps Co-op's neighbourhood footprint. Comparable product mix, customer base, and UK-only operating geography.
• Central England Co-operative: Regional UK consumer cooperative operating food stores and funeral care across the Midlands. Most direct structural analogue in cooperative ownership, store format, and funeral-care diversification.
• Dignity plc: UK-listed funeral services provider and the largest direct competitor to Co-op Funeral Care. Highly comparable business model, customer base, and demographic exposure in the funeral segment.
• Wm Morrison Supermarkets: UK Big Four grocer with a strong own-brand and convenience proposition. Competes with Co-op in core grocery and is a relevant margin and supply-chain peer.
• Midcounties Co-operative: Large UK regional consumer cooperative running grocery, convenience, and funeral services. Directly comparable cooperative model, member-ownership structure, and product mix to Co-operative Group.

Emerging players

• Aldi (UK): German discount grocer rapidly expanding UK store count. Threatens Co-op's value-end convenience positioning and is a key driver of structural UK grocery margin compression referenced in Co-op's 2025 results commentary.
• Lidl GB: German discounter with a growing UK estate and convenience-format expansion. Comparable to Aldi in pressuring Co-op's neighbourhood grocery economics and forcing reinvestment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/coopuk
• Facebookfacebook.com/Coopuk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-co-op-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Co-operative Group