UK retailer The Co-operative Group has announced that it is to invest some GBP200m (US$406m) in refitting and rebranding some 1,500 stores by the end of next year.


CEO Peter Marks, CEO of the Co-operative Trading Group, said the refit programme is the “the biggest modernisation programme in the group’s history”.


The group said that more than half of its 4,500 outlets, including food stores, pharmacies, travel, funeral and bank branches, and all its own-brand products and packaging will for the first time be unified under The Co-operative brand by December 2008.


“This is a massive undertaking, and one that was only made possible by the merger, in July, between The Co-operative Group and United Co-operatives,” said Marks. “The combined business now accounts for over 80% co-operative trade in the UK, for the first time making a brand relaunch a viable proposition.”


Marks continued: “There is far more to a brand identity than just the logo on our own-label goods and the fascia outside an outlet. One of the main objectives of the re-branding is to improve the overall brand standards. The inconsistency of our brand has been a major failing for far too long. This modernisation programme will address that.”

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