 | |
| Company type | Consumer Co-operative |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail (Wholesale) |
| Founded | 1995 (1854) |
| Defunct | 2014 |
| Fate | Merged withAnglia Regional Co-operative Society |
| Successor | Central England Co-operative |
| Headquarters | Midlands House, Hermes Road, Lichfield, Staffs. WS13 6RH ,United Kingdom |
Area served | English Midlands |
Key people | John Maltby, President Martyn Cheatle, Chief Executive |
| Products | Grocer,Travel Agent,Funeral Director,Car Dealership |
| Revenue | £670m (2013) |
| Members | 999,184 (2013) |
Number of employees | 7,500 (2013) |
| Website | midlands.coop |
Midlands Co-operative Society Limited was the second largestconsumer co-operative in theUnited Kingdom.[1] It was a registeredIndustrial and Provident Society,[2] a member of theCo-operative Union, theCo-operative Retail Trading Group and a corporate member ofThe Co-operative Group (formerly Co-operative Wholesale Society), the largest consumer co-operative in the world. The Society had over 200 stores, principally trading in theEnglish Midlands. Head office was located inLichfield,Staffordshire.
On 19 September 2013, it was announced that the boards of Midlands Co-operative Society andAnglia Regional Co-operative Society had agreed merger terms. Approved by members on 4 and 18 November, legal completion of the merger took place on 1 December, with the Anglia Society transferring engagements to Midlands Co-operative.[3] On 15 January 2014, members of the merged society approved a change of name toCentral England Co-operative effective from 25 January 2014.[4]
The Society traced its origins to theDerby Co-operative Provident Society which, in 1854, was one of the firstco-operatives in the Midlands. In 1969, a number ofLeicestershire societies merged to form theLeicestershire Co-operative Society. Similar circumstances occurred in 1985 acrossDerbyshire,Staffordshire andBirmingham forming theCentral Midlands Co-operative Society. In 1995, the boards of the Leicestershire and Central Midlands societies, which were financially sound and trading profitably, agreed to merge. Since 1854, 72 separate mergers between different societies were undertaken to form the Midlands Co-operative.
More recently, the Chesterfield Co-operative Society was absorbed by the Society in 2001,Ilkeston Co-operative Society in 2006,Raunds Co-operative Society in 2007,Moulton Co-operative Society in 2009 andShepley Industrial and Provident Society in 2013.[5]
On 1 December 2013, the Midlands Co-operative Society merged withAnglia Regional Co-operative Society.[6] The combined Society began trading asCentral England Co-operative with effect from 25 January 2014.
Membership was open to all residents of the Society's trading area, with members receiving a share of the profits in the form ofdividend.
The Society operated over 200 food stores and forecourts throughout its trading area. All had been rebranded asThe Co-operative Food, mirroring branding from The Co-operative Group.
Midlands Co-operative Funeral Services operated some 90 funeral homes throughout the region.
The Society no longer operates its department stores, having closed these in 2013.
The Society operated light-commercial vehicle servicing garages andMoT testing stations in Leicester and Loughborough. It also had a singleSuzuki car franchise inKettering, operating as The Co-operative Motor Group in Lincoln with Mazda, Citroën, Renault, Jeep, Chrysler and Harley Davidson franchises.
{{cite web}}:Check|url= value (help);Missing or empty|title= (help)[dead link] – the former Ilkeston Co-op site in 2005