News

Local Co-operative Chelmsford Star will be running an evening event in its quadrant department store to promote Fair-trade Fortnight on Thursday 8^rd March from 6.45pm.

 

The ticketed event aims to give attendees a greater understanding of Fair-trade. As such there will be a presentation by Joseph Cheruiyot from the Kibagenge Co-operative in Kenya, soon to be suppliers to the Co-operative 99 tea brand.

 

There will also be a launch of a Fairtrade king size quilt when all local quilting organisations will be encouraged to play their part.  The Society plans to have the quilt completed in readiness to display from ‘International Day of Co-operatives’ on 7^th July, 2012.

 

Tickets are £5 each and include a Fairtrade buffet. They are available from Customer Services on the first floor at quadrant, 220 Moulsham Street or email events@chelmsfordstar.coop to reserve a space.

 

 Local Co-operative Society, Chelmsford Star is currently on its annual recruitment drive to fill vacancies within its governance structure. 

Now in its 145th Year with an annual turnover in excess of £70m, the society is one of Mid Essex’s biggest employers with a workforce of over 800. 

The strategy and way forward for this ambitious organisation is determined by a non executive board of 10 Directors, all of whom are voted into their position by the membership. 

These Directors come from a variety of background; some are employed in commerce, industry or the commerce sector, whilst others are now retired. However they all have two things in common – a belief in Co-operative Principles and a desire to work together for the benefit of all Members and the community.  

They meet monthly in the evening with the Chief Executive Officer, whose role is to guide and advise the Directors before implementing agreed policies. All Directors give at least three hours a week to their position and receive regular training. 

If you have enthusiasm and experience in matters that could benefit other members, customers or the communities in which it serves then you may be just what the Society is currently looking for.  

So, if you need a fresh challenge, believe in the ethics of the Co-operative and are people minded this could be a rewarding option.  Why not find out more by contacting the Society for more details or reserve a place at the ‘Meet the Directors’ evening on Tuesday 28^th February in the ‘quadrant’ department store, Chelmsford. Doors open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start.  

Simply ring Rita Knott on 01245 216914 or visit our website www.chelmsfordstar.coop for more details.

Co-operative Energy has scooped the Best Energy Provider Award at the Consumer Moneyfacts Awards 2012. The new energy provider picked up the award following its pledge to offer transparency on profits, clear bills and a simple tariff for new and loyal customers.

The ethical energy provider was voted the best energy provider by consumers via an online survey, ahead of a shortlist of seven contenders including Big Six, EDF, e.on and npower.

The aim of the awards is to give the UK’s millions of customers a voice and a chance to reflect how they feel about the range of products available to them.

On receiving the award, Ramsay Dunning, Group General Manager at Co-operative Energy said: “I am very proud to collect this prestigious award on behalf of the team at Co-operative Energy. It means even more to us that we’ve being recognised by customers for offering a fair and honest price and service.

“As a membership organisation our purpose is to serve our customers and we are delighted to have been recognised for that.”

The awards were held at The HAC, London on Thursday 26^th January 2012.

Local Co-operative Society Chelmsford Star, reported bumper xmas sales in its Braintree quadrant department store despite the general high street doom and gloom.

Chief Executive Officer, Tony Gudgeon commented;

“The store sales have been gradually building momentum during December and we were delighted to see an uplift of footfall in the week leading into xmas of over 23%.   As a consequence the store achieved its best trading week of the year. This would indicate that many Braintree people chose to shop local and we had a good mix of what they wanted”.

Key areas in particular were toys, young fashion and footwear. The store houses the beleaguered footwear brand Barratt’s which went into administration prior to Xmas. As a new buyer hasn’t been found, the company plans to close many stores including concessions (store within stores). However, because of the continued excellent sales performance, the Barratt’s department in quadrant will be one of the units that will continue to trade, which was welcomed relief for all.

Sales in the store post xmas have continued to be buoyant as it moved into its annual winter sale with beds and furniture being the star performers.

The Society operates another quadrant department store in Chelmsford which also reported good sales but saw less footfall due to shoppers choosing to visit other shopping centres such as Westfields in Stratford.

Local Co-operative Society, Chelmsford Star has embarked on its annual search for its next ‘Charity of the Year’ for 2012/13.

 

Lance Gardner, Society President said;

 

‘The Board of Directors are currently looking for local registered charities to put themselves forward as potential candidates backed up with a written statement on what the funds are required for. They compile a short list in mid-February and then invite the 800 members of the Society’s employees to vote on their preference.

 

The name of the charity with the most votes is declared at the annual general meeting at the end of April. After which the new charity and Society work together on fund raising ideas for the year, including collecting tins featured at over 150 till points as well as sponsored events and raffles.

 

As the Society trades from 45 branches from Braintree to Southend-on-sea, prospective candidates should be able to demonstrate that their cause would be recognised by customers across all stores. Charities are encouraged to make contact with the Society’s stores with assistance and support in all major initiatives as and when required.

 

Chelmsford Star is now more than half way through with this year’s nomination, Families InFocus (Essex).

 

Rachel Ellis Director at Families InFocus (Essex) said;

 

“We were delighted to have been chosen as Chelmsford Star’s ‘Charity of the Year’. The money raised will make a huge difference by enabling us to reach out to many more families who since the down turn in the economy have approached us for help.”

 

In 2010/2011 the Society raised just under £35 000 for Macmillan Cancer Support which was apparently the largest individual donation made in Essex.

 

Interested parties should email Lance Gardner at coty@chelmsfordstar.coop or write to him at 220 Moulsham Street, Chelmsford, Essex, CM2 OLS by 31^st January 2012.

Local Co-operative Society Chelmsford Star is preparing for a year of celebration as it takes part in the International Year of Co-operatives 2012 which launches on 12^th January, 2012.

 

Owned by its members, run on behalf of its members, Chelmsford Star Co-operative will be joining 5,450 other co-operative enterprises across the UK to celebrate the International Year. It plans to mark the launch day with a photo opportunity including members of its Board, Councillor Robert Shepherd, Mayor of Chelmsford and Town Crier, Tony Appleton at 10am at its Duke Street convenience food store.

 

Designated by the United Nations, the year will demonstrate how, through the co-operative values and principles, ‘Co-operative Enterprises Build a Better World’. From farmers to football teams, healthcare to housing providers, photographers to food growers, Chelmsford Star a retail co-operative, is one of 1.4 million co-operative enterprises in the 98 countries across the world taking part in the 2012 International Year of Co-operatives.

 

Lance Gardner, President at Chelmsford Star comments,

 

 “As a co-operative we’re owned by our members and not shareholders.  We’re proud to belong to the local Essex business community and to be part of a global community of co-operative businesses. The UK is the birthplace of the global co-operative movement and we certainly hope that our activity will highlight how we are playing our part in building a better world.

 

Ed Mayo, Secretary General of Co-operatives UK comments,

 

“This is an opportunity for every co-operative, from locally owned community shops to national brands in the UK co-operative sector, to shine in the global spotlight. And demonstrate just how co-operatives here in the UK pursue economic visibility and social responsibility.”

 

For more information on the event contact Vanessa Howard on 01245 216911 or email vanessa@chelmsfordstar.coop

 

For more information on United Nations 2012 International Year of Co-operatives visit the ICA at www.2012.coop or the United Nations at http://social.un.org/coopsyear.

Over 200 Rotarians and a number of local businesses came together recently at the ‘quadrant’ department store in Chelmsford at an exclusive shopping event in aid of Families InFocus(Essex). 

 

During the evening Stylist Margaret Flemming presented style guides sessions for both ladies and men. QVC chef Malcolm Harradine demonstrated Christmas recipes. Local artists and jewellery makers also had the opportunity to display their goods and all enjoyed an excellent buffet provided by the in house restaurant, Brambles.

 

Society Marketing Manager, Vanessa Howard said;

 

‘This is our fourth event for the local Rotary Clubs and is not only a great networking opportunity but at the same time raises funds for a good cause.’

All proceeds for the event including money raised from a magnificent raffle of over £500 worth of prizes enabled the quadrant and the Rotary Clubs to hand over a cheque to Families InFocus(Essex) for just over £1200!

Chelmsford Star Co-operative Funeral Services held its fourth evening remembrance service at its branch in Great Baddow on Friday 9th December 2011.

 

Over 80 people braved the cold weather and turned up to hear Piper Trevor Sharp start the event followed by the blessing of the Christmas tree by Reverend Carol Smith of St Lukes Moulsham Lodge, a seasonal poem read by humanist Chris Cornell, and a very moving Last Post performed by the Royal British Legion standard bearers. The event climaxed with the haunting voice of teenager Chelsea Claydon singing ‘Amazing Grace’, bringing a tear to many an eye.

 

The evening finished with personal remembrance messages placed on a beautifully decorated Christmas tree followed by mince pies and mulled wine.

 

Funeral Operations Manager, Craig Jackson said;

 

“It was a fantastic turnout and many people mentioned how touched they were by the service. I would like to thank all who gave their time into making the evening so special.”

Chelmsford Star Co-operative has joined forces with Essex Community Foundation to promote the ‘Surviving Winter Appeal 2011’.

Staying warm and healthy in our cold winter is something most of us take for granted. However, around 700 people in Essex die each year because of cold weather and poor living conditions. Many elderly and vulnerable people struggle to stretch their winter payments whilst others have far less of a need for them. Essex Community Foundation acts as a conduit between the two, to enable a fairer distribution of funds to those who desperately need it.

Marketing and PR Manager Vanessa Howard said,

‘The figure of 700 is shocking; by promoting the scheme through our stores we hope that a greater awareness can go some way to making a real difference’.  

The scheme, endorsed by both Sir Terry Wogan and Sir David Jason, is growing in momentum. For those interested in donating visit www.essexcommunityfoundation.org.uk.

Essex based Co-operative Society, Chelmsford Star, which has enjoyed strong trading results over recent years, has announced changes in leadership at Board level.

Lance Gardner has been appointed President and Pauline Dodd, Vice President.  Both will serve until the Society’s next elections which will be in April 2012.

 

The Board is confident that these changes will enable the Society to meet the undoubted challenges 2012 will bring and will serve well the interest of members.

Co-operatives UK has launched the UK's website for the United Nations International Year of Co-operatives 2012 - www.uk.coop/2012.

The website provides information on what is happening across the country and features a range of useful resources about co-operatives and the International Year for businesses, individuals, journalists and all those interested in learning more.

Also available on the website is a UK identity mark for the International Year. Developed by The Co-operative Group and Co-operatives UK, it can be downloaded in various formats by co-operative businesses and supporters for use in communications and campaigns during the International Year.

In addition, toolkits and leaflets can now be ordered from the site. A range of materials will be added over the coming months – case studies, images and films – which businesses and supporters can use to make the most of the International Year.

The 2012 website also provides extensive links to other activities and sites across the world, including a feed to the Global News Hub and a forthcoming link to www.stories.coop, a new International Co-operative Alliance initiative which is due to go live at the start of 2012.

Ed Mayo, Secretary General of Co-operatives UK, said:

"2012 is a unique opportunity. We'd love to see everyone in the sector – and beyond – make it a co-operative year by promoting their co-operative values.

"This new website will help businesses and individuals make the most of it – an online events map, useful resources to order or download and links to what else is happening. It will be an online hub for everyone in the UK involved or interested in the International Year of Co-operatives."

To find out more, please visit the website www.uk.coop/2012

Chelmsford Star Co-operative recently held its 24^th retired and long serving employees dinner at its quadrant department store, in Chelmsford.

Over 100 attended the event, including 10 members of staff who had reached mile stone lengths of service.  Between them they had notched up 190 years of working for the Society. In paying tribute to them, Chief Executive Officer, Tony Gudgeon said;

“We currently employ over 800 staff across our four trading divisions and our employees are critical to the success of our business. Therefore it’s a great pleasure to take time out to reward these particular individuals who have given so much to the Society for much of their working life.”

The employee who had reached the longest service of 35 years was Veronica Graham, from Springfield in Chelmsford. She currently works on administration for the food division and plans to retire in 2012.

Chelmsford Star Co-operative's ‘quadrant’ department store in Braintree recently held a 1940’s evening in order to raise funds for its charity of the year, Families InFocus(Essex).

Over 200 enjoyed a whole host of entertainment including Barry Smith and his silver Bird, Martine and A2 Jive dancers, 40’s hair and makeup, a 1940’s style fashion show, and 1940's nibbles including spam sandwiches.

The Braintree and District Museum brought an array of war time ephemera and ex fighter pilot; Frank Parker took many through his special photo album of memories and mementos.

Commenting on the evening Marketing Manager Vanessa Howard said;

“We were delighted at the turn out especially as so many made the effort to dress up in the 40’s style which just shows the strength of feeling people have about this period.”

Ken Crisell won a flight on an original Tiger Moth, the star prize in the charity raffle which along with the ticket sales raised over £1300 for the charity.

Local Co-operative Society Chelmsford Star has just celebrated 25 years of travel in its Chelmsford quadrant department store.

Over the years the travel department has served literally thousands of people creating dream holidays. Currently branded as the Co-operative Travel, the four well travelled members of staff spend much of their time today putting together long haul holidays for the more discerning clients. Travel Manager, Debbie Jackson said;

"Our clients expect a good selection of travel options, competitive prices but service is the key. They want to feel special and that their custom is valued. Hence why we see so much repeat business, our girls have a wealth of experience so that we can correctly advise ensuring that each of our clients get the holiday they deserve"

To celebrate the occasion the staff were joined by the original Manager, John De La Pascua, who commented;

"I have been retired for thirteen years now, but I did relish my time as a Travel Manager, it was always so rewarding especially when you had clients return year after year, so you know you were doing a good job"

Debbie and John reflected on what had happened in the travel industry over the past 25 years and were both surprised to learn that the best selling travel firm in 1986 was Thomsons and today it was still the same!

Chelmsford Star Co-operative Services Funeral division brought Chelmsford town centre to a halt at midday last Saturday when it celebrated 75 years of serving the local community with a funeral procession from Writtle to one of its branches in Baddow Road.

Starting on the green in Writtle, many of the villagers came to see and photograph an assortment of various funeral vehicles including a 1935 Austin, a horse drawn carriage and a motorbike with side coffin carrier.

The procession left Writtle at 12 noon to pass the Society's Broomfield funeral branch on its way through the town centre towards the Army Navy roundabout. At that point it was then led down Baddow Road towards the funeral branch, by Craig Jackson, Funeral Operations Manager and Corrine Cadey one of the Society's female funeral directors.

Craig commented;

"Fortunately the weather was on our side, and we were delighted with the turnout by everyone. We now look forward to the next 75 years and wonder what the future has in store? I expect a funeral in 2064 may well look very different to today as indeed one in 2011 does against one that took place in 1936."

At the Baddow Road branch many came to view an exhibition of a number of historic items including a funeral helmet dating back to 1558 and a Funeral bier from 1899. The Society's President, Maurice Austin helped ex funeral employee Jan Dewer (also born in 1936), to cut the specially made anniversary cake.

Chelmsford Star Co-operative has supported local initiative 'Harvest for the Hungry' since its inception in 1999. This county wide annual event is hoping to raise this year £35k or 44 tons of aid which will be sent to the neediest parts of North Western Bulgaria. The project involves 106 schools and 38 churches and many businesses and individuals working together to make a huge difference to an area so desperate for humanitarian help. The Society donated this year a pallet of Co-operative flour and much needed shrink wrap to protect all the donated goods for their long journey by road.

Marketing & PR Manager Vanessa Howard said;

'When we hear stories about how a simple parcel of food can mean life or death to some people it's humbling and reminds us of just how lucky we are not to be in their situation. This is such a worthwhile project that binds the Essex community together for the benefit of others'

Since the project started over 40 000 boxes of food aid have been sent helping in particular, orphans and the elderly in a village called Lom on the Danube. The Charity has also managed to transform a dilapidated children's home, sent 3 ambulances, a mini bus and a fire engine.

The quadrant department store in Chelmsford has made a commitment to giving its customers and workers an enhanced level of protection against potentially fatal heart attacks.

It has recently purchased an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and called in St John Ambulance to train 6 members of staff in how to use it.

In the UK, one person suffers a heart attack every two minutes and as many as one in three will die before they reach hospital. For each minute that passes without defibrillation, the chances of survival fall by up to 10 per cent. Survival rates increase by more than 50% if a defibrillator is used within the first four minutes. Thirteen per cent of workplace casualties are cardiac arrest victims.

St John Ambulance in the East of England launched a campaign earlier this year to encourage more businesses to buy in the AEDs and training in a bid to stop people dying unnecessarily.

St John Ambulance East Regional Marketing Manager Phil Cheung said:

'We're delighted that the quadrant has taken up our offer and hope many others follow suit. Businesses who have experienced someone dying of a heart attack on their premises know it's extremely traumatic for everyone involved. And we know that those deaths can be dramatically reduced with this simple machine. We provide training but it is actually so straight forward it tells you what to do itself, enabling anyone to be the difference between a life lost and a life saved.'

Vanessa Howard, Marketing & PR Manager at the quadrant said:

'We serve many thousand customers a week throughout our store and we feel that having a defibrillator on the premises gives everyone the peace of mind that we are trained and have equipment should it ever be required. It’s really an extension to our customer service as a caring organisation."

A defibrillator can be the difference between a life lost and a life saved. Phil Cheung added:

'Every year, thousands of people die of cardiac arrest when first aid could give them the chance to live. Our own research shows that currently 72% of businesses don't have access to a defibrillator despite 66% of employees believing that employers should reasonably be expected to keep one.

To encourage more businesses and organisations to install defibrillators, St John Ambulance is offering a special package in the East of England of a Philips Heart Start defibrillator and on-site training in how to use it for up to eight people for just £1,295 plus VAT.

Essex based Chelmsford Star has reported record interim results for 28 weeks ended 13th August 2011.

Gross takings amounted to £45,598,618, an increase of £4,433,714 or 10.77%, aided by an expansion in Food. Gross takings on a "like for like" basis increased by £1,743,981 or 4.24%.

Gross takings in the Society's convenience based Food business grew 12.82%, and 5.23% on a "like for like" basis. Commenting on the Society's Food figures, Chief Executive Officer, Tony Gudgeon stated, "I am very pleased with our Food performance because for the third year running we are in the upper quartile of food growth on a "like for like" basis and we have grown profitability in a very difficult market".

The challenging economic conditions have had an effect on the Society's Departmental Stores where business is down 3.16%, but Travel up 12.68%, Funerals up 16.48% and Investment Property income up 6.70% have all contributed to very solid growth.

Trading profit amounted to £1,141,123, which is a new interim record for the Society, and net profit amounted to £956,461, which is £87,201 or 10.0% higher than a year ago.

Commenting on profitability, Society President, Maurice Austin stated, "Our business plan and business strategies recognised that 2011 was going to be very difficult for retailers but our business model has shown real resilience and delivered an interim result which is better than we anticipated".