A savings initiative, called Member Prices, will enable CI Co-op shareholders to access discounts on selected goods at the checkout.

The reward scheme goes live across all Channel Island Co-Op stores from today (2 October).

Selected goods are labelled, and when a shopper comes to the check out, they quote their Co-Op shareholder number and a discount is applied automatically to their final bill.

David McGrath, the Co-Op's Chief Marketing and Membership Officer, says Member Prices has come about because shareholders told management they wanted an instant savings scheme like this:

"We've been listening to our members and we've been trialling the concept of Member Prices since April. The cost of living has hit our members really hard and, while food inflation is starting to slow, we know household budgets remain under pressure and so we've invested massively in price, to make a real difference to our members."

Member Prices was tested in Jersey's Don Street store and then put to shareholders at the annual meetings in May. Customer focus groups gave positive feedback in September, leading to the October roll-out.

However, the introduction comes at a price, as the retailer's 10% off discount weekends are being shelved. David McGrath says they are not as popular as first thought:

"The 10% discounts were not as inclusive as we'd hoped. For many members shopping at the weekend wasn't convenient. Equally, the £40 threshold that you had to spend to access that 10% was just too much for some of our members. We won't be doing those from this time, given the feedback we've had."

Mr McGrath says Member Prices will not affect the annual Co-Op dividend payment:

"It is our intention to continue to pay the dividend, calculated every year and announced every year at our member meetings. What I would say is that currently that is at 2%."

The annual profit-share payout was halved from 4% in 2024 due to 'tough trading conditions' 

The Society used to offer 'double divi' of 8% on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but that was suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic and scrapped completely in June 2021.