No thanks to its insurance business, which saw sales drop 21%, Co-operative Group Limited (Co-op) has reported an underlying profit before tax of £14 million – still a 48% drop from last year’s £27 million. Co-op also attributed the decrease to a new reward scheme worth millions of pounds.

Here are the numbers for Co-op’s biggest business areas:

Co-op Food

• Operating profit - up 22% to £77 million (2016: £63 million)
• Underlying operating profit - up 3% to £65 million (2016: £63 million)

Co-op Funeralcare

• Sales total - up 1.2% to £166 million (2016: £164 million)
• Operating profit - down 33.9% to £41 million (2016: £62 million)
• Underlying operating profit - stable at £41 million (2016: £42 million)

Legal Services

• Sales total - up 9.1% to £12 million (2016: £11 million)
• Operating profit - down more than 60% to £0.2 million (2016: £0.6 million)

Co-op Insurance

• Sales total - down 21% to £164 million (2016: £208 million)
• Operating loss - £11 million (2016: loss of £4 million)
• Underlying operating loss - £1 million (2016: profit of £11 million)

As for the reward scheme, it cost Co-op a total of £35 million – £29 million worth of member rewards plus £6 million for local causes. Group chief executive Steve Murrells noted that over 1.1 million people had signed up since the launch of the reward scheme in September 2016.

The co-operative also said its operating profit of £51 million – down from 2016’s £72 million – reflects continuing rebuild of businesses. Meanwhile, Co-op has sold its remaining 1% stake in the Co-op Bank to an existing shareholder.


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