
Channel Islands Coop propose lower 2% dividend for second year as finances improve
A major Jersey and Guernsey supermarket chain wants to offer a lower dividend to customers in their membership scheme for the second year running.
The Board of Channel Islands Coop has recommended continuing with the halved dividend of 2%, having made the "unprecedented adjustment" in 2024 due to difficult trading conditions.
A public outcry followed the announcement of last year's reduced rate, although it was voted through by members following a year of financial hardship for the organisation that saw a net loss of £1.8 million in 2023.
Coop says its latest accounts show improvements with turnover increasing and a net profit of £800,000 in 2024.
If members approve the 2% dividend payout, they will be able to withdraw it from Thursday 22 May.
The Chief Executive Officer of Channel Islands Coop, Mark Cox, says: "Our primary focus last year was to strengthen our financial performance so we could continue rewarding our loyal members while delivering long-term value.
"Immediate rewards through member pricing have resonated strongly, delivering more than £1 million in savings since its launch in October."
Five 10% discount weekends were also offered to members throughout 2024.
The Annual Meeting of Members (AMM) will take place in Jersey and Guernsey, where those attending will be asked to vote on the dividend payment, as long as they have been signed up to the scheme for at least six months.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Tesco basks in the sun as sales surge - but boss warns Labour tax hikes are fuelling inflation
Cyber security drive The boss of Tesco said cyber security was a top priority after a high-profile attack on Marks & Spencer. 'This is probably top of my inbox on a daily, weekly basis. We stay on top of cyber all the time,' said Ken Murphy. 'We have invested continuously in upgrading our cyber capabilities, because this is a moving target.' M&S was attacked over Easter by hackers who stole the data of millions of customers. It only restored online shopping this week after 46 days. The Co-op and Harrods have also recently fallen victim to cyber attacks. Recent warm weather has given Tesco a boost as shoppers snap up its picnic food and summer clothing. Britain's largest supermarket said sales in the UK rose 5.1 per cent to £12.3billion in the 13 weeks to May 24. 'The summer weather, the good weather, is definitely helpful,' said chief executive Ken Murphy. But with a supermarket price war raging, he warned the grocery market was 'intensely competitive'. And he said Labour's tax increases were fuelling inflation. 'There are definitely continued inflationary pressures on the market,' said Murphy. 'I think you've got to look at things like the impact of all the new taxation and regulatory costs on the industry.' Total sales across the Tesco business, which includes stores in Ireland and central Europe, rose 4.6 per cent to £16.4billion in the first quarter. And its market share in the UK has risen to 28 per cent as its premium range drove sales up. But Tesco stuck to profit guidance for the year of between £2.7billion and £3billion, given the fierce supermarket rivalry. 'We're seeing intense competition from all aspects of the market,' said Murphy. 'Our guidance reflects that and continues to reflect that.' In April, Murphy warned that Tesco was ready to take a £400million hit to profits this year as the competition hots up. Speaking yesterday, he said he was 'pleased' with the group's performance as it attracted new customers by matching prices at Aldi on more than 600 items. Customers are dining at home more and eating more fresh food, according to Murphy. But supermarkets and their supply chains have had to grapple with higher cost pressures in the wake of measures introduced in Chancellor Rachel Reeves's autumn Budget. A sharp increase in employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and a big increase in the national minimum wage have hit businesses. Retailers face a £5billion higher bill after the Budget, according to the British Retail Consortium. Tesco said it will pay an extra £235million in the current financial year as a result of the NICs hike. The supermarket announced earlier this year that it would be cutting 400 jobs and Murphy has also refused to rule out further losses. Rising commodity prices for goods such as cocoa, meat and poultry are also piling on the 'greatest pressure' to food prices, he said. The supermarket is the 'best-in-class player' in UK food, said the Royal Bank of Canada's analysts Manjari Dhar and Richard Chamberlain. 'It has done well to gain market share in recent years, but we note a step up in competitiveness by some key peers may mean that further gains are more difficult to come by,' the pair added. Garry White, chief investment commentator at Charles Stanley, said: 'Britain's largest grocer has delivered a resilient performance despite a price war initiated by Asda and waning consumer confidence.' Tesco shares rose 1.6 per cent, or 6.3p, to 391.6p yesterday.


Times
2 days ago
- Times
Tesco sent extra stocks to bail out M&S during cyberattack
Britain's biggest supermarket stepped in to supply extra stocks of Marmite and Coca-Cola to Marks & Spencer while it was hit by a crippling cyberattack, its boss has revealed. Ken Murphy, chief executive of Tesco, said that M&S and some of the Co-Op's independent societies asked Booker, Tesco's wholesale arm, for support sourcing products while their supply systems were down. 'Over the period when they've been impacted, Booker has supplied both M&S and Co-op with products and supported them in any way they could,' he said. 'They asked us to supply products and we said yes.' In M&S's case, Booker is understood to have increased deliveries of third-party branded items, such as the household staples Marmite and Coca-Cola, and shipped more items directly to shops. The main Co-op Group did not request assistance for its supermarkets but it is understood that some of its independent societies temporarily turned to Booker. Independent Co-op societies are consumer co-operatives that operate independently within the Co-operative Group while maintaining their own distinct ownership and governance. The support was short term and both companies have since restored their operations after the cyberattack. M&S was arguably the worst affected: its online business was knocked offline for nearly two months. It has warned that the attack was likely to dent its profits this year by at least £300 million. M&S relaunched its website this week and resumed online orders, prompting a surge of customer demand. Many shoppers had left items in their online baskets, ready to buy once the site came back online. The company declined to comment on which products had proved most popular since the relaunch. The request for support from Britain's largest supermarket highlights the severity of the disruption and also reflects a rare moment of collaboration in the competitive grocery sector. Tesco, which reported an increase in like-for-like sales over the past three months, insisted that this had not been because of the cyberattacks at M&S and Co-Op. 'We haven't seen any uptick in activity or attacks since some of our competitors were attacked,' Murphy said. 'We haven't seen any material changes.' He emphasised that cybersecurity was at the 'top of my inbox on a daily, weekly basis'. 'We stay on top of cyber all the time. We have invested continuously in upgrading our cyber-capabilities because this is a moving target all the time. As the sophistication of potential attackers improves, we have to keep investing behind it. 'We stay very vigilant. We invest substantially behind it. We seek to learn from what's going on in the industry,' Murphy said.


Times
2 days ago
- Times
Tesco sent emergency stocks to bail out M&S during cyberattack
Britain's biggest supermarket stepped in to supply emergency stocks of Marmite and Coca-Cola to Marks & Spencer while it was hit by a crippling cyberattack, its boss has revealed. Ken Murphy, chief executive of Tesco, said that M&S and some of the Co-Op's independent societies asked Booker,Tesco's wholesale arm, for support sourcing products while their supply systems were down. 'Over the period when they've been impacted, Booker has supplied both M&S and Co-op with products and supported them in any way they could,' he said. 'They asked us to supply products and we said yes.' • Business live blog: All the latest news as it happens In M&S's case, Booker is understood to have increased deliveries of third-party branded items, such as the household staples Marmite and Coca-Cola, and shipped more items directly to shops. The main Co-op Group did not request assistance for its supermarkets but it is understood that some of its independent societies temporarily turned to Booker. Independent Co-op societies are consumer co-operatives that operate independently within the Co-operative Group while maintaining their own distinct ownership and governance. The support was short-term and both companies have since restored their operations following the cyberattack. M&S was arguably the worst affected: its online business was knocked offline for nearly two months. It has warned that the attack is likely to dent its profits this year by at least £300 million. M&S relaunched its website this week and resumed online orders, prompting a surge of customer demand. Many shoppers had left items in their online baskets, ready to buy once the site came back online. The company declined to comment on which products had proved most popular since the relaunch. The request for support from Britain's largest supermarket highlights the severity of the disruption and also reflects a rare moment of collaboration in the competitive grocery sector. Tesco, which reported an increase in like-for-like sales over the past three months, insisted that this had not been because of the cyberattacks at M&S and Co-Op. 'We haven't seen any uptick in activity or attacks since some of our competitors were attacked,' Murphy said. 'We haven't seen any material changes.' He emphasised that cybersecurity was at the 'top of my inbox on a daily, weekly basis. We stay on top of cyber all the time. We have invested continuously in upgrading our cyber capabilities because this is a moving target all the time. As the sophistication of potential attackers improves, we have to keep investing behind it.' 'We stay very vigilant. We invest substantially behind it. We seek to learn from what's going on in the industry.'