East of England Co-op stores in Essex included in £5 million refurbishment investment

Four East of England Co-op Food stores across Essex will be refurbished as part of a wider £5 million investment by the retailer.

The refurbishments, which form part of the East of England Co-op’s portfolio reshape, will improve the stores’ member and customer experience, with new services and products, as well as their environmental impact with new roof-installed solar panels and eco-friendly refrigeration units.

The East of England Co-op is refurbishing a total of 12 stores across Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk over the next four months.

Kelvedon’s Food store on High Street will be the first to receive the upgrades and will close at 10pm on Saturday 17 August and is due to re-open at 6am on 4 September 2024.

Hatfield Peverel, Mersea Road (Colchester) and Cross Road (Maldon) will also benefit from the refurbishment investment. ​

The new refrigeration units installed in the four stores could save up to 57 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year, the equivalent of powering over 8,000 average UK homes, while solar panels added to the Kelvedon and Mersea Road, Colchester stores will save up to an additional 13 tonnes per year.

Stores in Kelvedon and Hatfield Peverel will see several other benefits including a new ‘to-go’ food range, including fresh coffee, hot food, Tango Ice Blast, Fwip ice cream, plus an in-store bakery.

The stores will also benefit from the East of England Co-op’s updated look and feel, as seen across its newest stores in Cambridgeshire, Chelmsford and Bishop’s Stortford.

Doug Field OBE, Chief Executive Officer at the East of England Co-op, said: “This investment will allow us to enhance our member and customer journey through upgrades to store sustainability and improved shopping experience. This is part of our commitment to continue supporting the local communities these stores serve by providing quality products and exceptional customer service.

“We want to do everything we can to minimise our environmental impact, which is why we’re placing a large emphasis on the stores’ sustainability throughout these refurbishments. These are crucial upgrades as we continue to invest in and reshape our wider portfolio.”

The East of England Co-op is the largest independent retailer in East Anglia with over 200 Food stores, Travel branches and local Funeral Service branches across Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire.