Central Co-op renews Retail Insight partnership as it tackles food waste with WasteInsight solution

Central Co-op has renewed its partnership with Retail Insight, a provider of in-store execution software, for an additional three years.

Central Co-op is an independent retail co-operative society, comprising 450 trading outlets across 21 counties and employing 7,500 colleagues. Its retail network spans 255 food stores and 18 petrol station outlets, as well as offering floristry and funeral services.  

‘Creating a sustainable society for all’ is Central Co-op’s founding purpose, and food waste - along with carbon reduction and recycling - is one of its key sustainability focuses. 

Since 2018, for example, it has worked with FareShare Midlands to create 6.5 million meals and also works with food redistributor, Olio, as part of its ambition of achieving zero food waste.

Central Co-op first partnered with Retail Insight in 2021, using Retail Insight’s WasteInsight platform for mark-downs on products nearing expiry to increase sell-through and reduce waste. 

Ben Grove, Senior Operational Excellence Manager at Central Co-op, says: “WasteInsight has revolutionised our approach to markdowns and waste reduction, allowing us to optimise our operations and improve sustainability. We are excited to continue this journey and experience the additional benefits that the prompted markdown feature will bring to the business."

As part of the contract extension, Central Co-op will also start to implement Retail Insight’s Prompted Markdown feature, which sits within the aforementioned solution. Enabling better expiration management, this feature will allow the co-operative to quickly identify products nearing expiry.

Jessica Westwell, Customer Success Manager at Retail Insight, says: "We are delighted to continue our partnership with Central Co-op. Its commitment to waste reduction and operational excellence is truly inspiring, and it's been great to work with the team to increase compliance and drive performance through our solution.”

2024 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Green retail is a key focus area for the sixth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards, which is now open for entries.

The awards, sponsored by CADS, 3D Cloud, Brightpearl by Sage’s Lightning 50, and Retail Technology Show 2025, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Key 2024 dates

Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline 

Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed

30th October-6th November: Judging days

Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London.