Headed by Food General Manager Peter Fletcher, the Food Division employs around 600 people and operates 12 Foodcentres and 21 Lateshops throughout Coventry, Warwickshire and south Leicestershire.

“Massive investment has been ploughed into the Food Division”

In recent years massive investment has been made up in new stores and a number of existing outlets have been redesigned and revamped.

Earlier this year the Society relocated its Lateshop in Camp Hill, Nuneaton, in a £1.3 million move into a new shopping complex, the Camp Hill Village Centre.

And towards the end of 2008 the Lateshop in the village of Barwell, Leicestershire. The shop, which has served the village for more than 120 years, underwent a £670,000 revamp.

As part of the project it received new refrigeration, flooring, ceilings, fixtures and fittings and a larger shop floor.

The shop warehouse also underwent a refit which in turn allowed improved supply and a wider range of products, in particular fresh foods. Customers have been delighted and Barwell has seen its food sales rise by 15 to 20 per cent.

In 2008 the Lateshop in Norman Place Road, Coundon, underwent a revamp to the tune of more than £668,000 as the Society continued in its strive to provide an enriched and greener shopping experience.

All the refurbishments were part  of a £5 million investment programme to improve and upgrade Food and Non-Food branches throughout the Society network.

In 2007 the Society spent £1,330,000 on its stores in New Bilton, Rugby, and Balsall Common and in 2006 the Stoney Stanton Lateshop in Leicestershire benefited from an extended warehouse, larger shop floor, new refrigeration and an extensive range of products thanks to a  £300,000 refit.

In Harbury £179,000 was spent on a new look for the store as well as an enhanced range of goods.   It is now known locally as the ‘Harrods of Harbury’.

In 2005 The Heart of England Co-operative Society’s Foodcentre in Nuneaton underwent a £1/2 million refurbishment altering its design, layout and product range to reflect the demands of our customers.

That same year £235,000 was ploughed into the Foodcentre in Bulkington to give customers and members better choice and a more attractive and relaxing shopping experience.

“One of the dominant forces in UK food retailing”

The Foodcentre in Attleborough had in excess of £400,000 spent on it in 2005, providing the store with a new look and fitting disabled toilets.

In January 2004 the Society's Lateshop in the city's Allesley district underwent a substantial refurbishment to increase its range and transform it into a Foodcentre, the Society's branding for larger stores.

In June 2004 a similar upgrading took place at the Society's store at Hillmorton, near Rugby - now also rebranded as a Foodcentre following a major six-figure refurbishment programme.

In April 2001 a 4,500 sq ft Co-op Lateshop opened at the prestigious new Warwick Gates Shopping Centre in Royal Leamington Spa. This superb store is the focal point for the centre, in which the Society has invested £1.5 million.

In Coventry's Willenhall - a deprived area shunned by major national chains - the Society showed its commitment to the community by ploughing £1 million into a new 10,000 sq ft Co-op Foodcentre.

In Wellesbourne, Warwickshire, £1.25 million was spent in 1998 on a new Co-op Foodcentre in answer to local demand for better shopping facilities. The store's success resulted in a £½ million extension being added on, which was completed in the summer of 2003.