Increased Member Participation, LGBTQ+ Pride Month & Men in Childcare
This article will take approximately 3 minutes to read
Published 10 Jun 2022 in Phil's blog
Last week it was great to see member participation reaching a record high of 24% in Food Retail.
When we talk about member participation, it relates to the percentage of transactions that are with members rather than non-members and is something we measure each period. This ultimately forms a vital cog in our Society Steering wheel by giving an overall measure of member economic participation. It’s a great example of the hard work our stores have been putting in to achieve this increase and I want to say a big well done to a number of high-performing stores including Tividale, Vine Island, Queensway and Bampton. Great to hear.
As we continue to focus on building our membership following the Your Co-op Members app launch last year, we are building on our success with a new marketing campaign beginning on 15 June. Based on how we can help our members' money go further, ‘Members Save More’ will be rolled out across all our food stores and digital channels to draw attention to the new member offers available. We hope this will encourage members to shop with us more often to take advantage of the great deals available to them.
I think the fresh point of sale materials will be really impactful and stand out in-store, where it will be displayed prominently – you won’t be able to miss it! We want all members to ‘Shop, Scan, Save’ every time they go in-store. More updates over the next few weeks.
Jubilee grant celebrations
What an incredible Jubilee celebration it was. Like many of you, it was great to see the events at Buckingham Palace being commemorated with different cultures and communities. Just like our own trading areas, it forms an integral part of the local communities and helps keep us all connected in one way or another.
Since the celebrations, we have received some incredible feedback from our Community Jubilee grants recipients with £18,500 given out towards the celebrations. Supporting a number of community groups and partners, I am really proud and thank everyone in the community team who made this possible. Click here to read more.
As mentioned last week, I had the chance to join in with the local celebrations at Wyre Forest Regional Community partner, Home Start. Hosting a community jubilee picnic with many of the families it was nice to get involved and meet some of them. Have a watch of the video update below.
June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month
As highlighted by the Co-op Pride group earlier this week, June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month. Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Pride movement in the UK (following the first official UK Pride march in London in 1972), it’s a worldwide celebration helping to recognise the influence of the LGBTQ+ group.
It was really interesting to read the article on ‘Coming out in the workplace’ and how this has become a prominent topic in the media following Jake Daniels, who became the first active male professional footballer to come out publicly as gay.
At Midcounties, we want everybody to feel comfortable when coming to work, so if you would like to talk about this or anything else, the Co-op Pride group are there as well as support from our retail partner, Grocery Aid, who can provide a 24/7 free and confidential help. Click here to read more and look out for more next week on Pride month.
Men in Childcare Recruitment campaign begins
Something I have highlighted previously is Men in Childcare. Having sat down with Childcare colleagues Nuwan and Daniel last November, our ambition is to increase the amount of men working in the Childcare sector from 2% to 20% over the coming years.
There are lots of benefits to this, Men in Childcare can encourage different approaches to learning and play and provide a positive balance for children. They can also help to reduce gender stereotypes and change perceptions of the childcare industry.
This week sees the beginning of the latest recruitment campaign, where colleagues from any trading area can apply and gain qualifications. A great opportunity which is open to any colleague, there are also vacancies for female colleagues too. To find out more click here and look out for the second update next week.
Matt Pencherz, Chipping Norton – 35 years long service
Yesterday, I got the chance to present Matt Pencherz at Chipping Norton Food with his long service award. Celebrating 35 years with us, it was great to hear the memories over the years and present Matt with his vouchers and award. Outside of work, Matt enjoys playing golf, walking & traveling – he recently came back from Alaska! Well done Matt and thank you for your hard work and dedication.
Finally, Society Elections will open for nominations this coming Monday. They encourage any member, including colleagues, to put themselves forward by nominating to stand for either the Board of Directors or the Member Engagement Committee. If you are interested in becoming more involved and want to help lead our Society, then please click here to find out more. Nominations will close 18 July.
If you enjoyed this week's blog, why not give it a 'Heart' above or leave a comment below.