East of England Co-op wins esteemed Hermes Grand Prix Award
We are proud to say we scooped two awards at the Hermes Retail Week Supply Chain Awards on 29 September, hosted by former England Rugby star Matt Dawson, including the esteemed Hermes Grand Prix Award.
The first award of the evening saw us take home the Arrow XL Collaboration Award for their Sourced Locally initiative. The award recognises genuine collaboration across supply chains – be it between one retailer and another or retailers and their suppliers.
As winners of our category,we were put in the running for the Hermes Grand Prix award, selected from the winners of all 13 categories on the evening.
Since Sourced Locally began in 2007, we now work with over 100 local producers across Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, providing their customers with thousands of locally made products to choose from in store. The initiative has continued to see year-on-year growth, with a 15% increase in sales of local food and drink (totalling £16.8m) in the last financial year.
Over the past nine years we have put more than £45 million back into the regional economy through fair and honest payments to local producers, supporting the creation of over 400 new jobs and protecting many more. Through this supplier-partner relationship, local suppliers have been given the confidence to invest in new premises, equipment, product development and apprenticeship schemes.
Roger Grosvenor, our Joint Chief Executive said: “The Sourced Locally initiative underpins the belief that whilst profit is vital to every business, organisations can do well and do good.
“We really care about our producers and suppliers and the importance of this relationship is embedded in the whole ethos of the company. We work directly to make sure they are treated as equal partners and that their businesses have a sustainable future.”
We follow the principle of the three Ps – a product must make a profit for the producer, be profitable to the retailer, and be available at a price customers are happy to pay.
For further information about the Hermes Retail Week Supply Chain Awards visit www.supplychainawards.retail-week.com