East of England Co-op to end super-strength booze sales
The East of England Co-op is to end the sale of cheap, super-strength beers and ciders in all its stores from 16 December following a successful trial.
The roll-out of the ‘Reducing the Strength’ campaign to 35 East of England Co-op stores in Norfolk, as well as over 50 stores across Essex, follows the success of the campaign in Suffolk where the sale of very low cost beer and cider with an alcohol volume of more than 6.5 % ended in September 2012.
Roger Grosvenor, executive officer – retail for the East of England Co-op, said: “I am extremely pleased to announce that sales of cheap, super-strength lager and cider will stop in all our stores. Our partnership work has shown how removing the problem at source can help reduce anti-social behaviour in the local areas where we trade. As an ethical retailer, we want to ensure all our local communities can benefit from the positive effect such action can achieve.”
Inspector Darren Brooks from Norfolk Constabulary’s licensing team said: “Unfortunately high-strength alcohol tends to go to a minority of customers including some of the most vulnerable. We recognise the impact this can have on communities and welcome the action taken by the East of England Co-op to remove the problem at source and hope it will inspire other retailers to follow suit.”
Never Miss a Retail Update!The East of England Co-op is now hoping that other retailers will take the same stance.
Grosvenor added: “We hope to encourage other retailers in the county to take similar action. Our trials in Ipswich showed that the volume of alcohol sales remained consistent and yet the number of alcohol units bought by customers dropped by 113,000. So this is not only good news for customers and communities, it’s good for business too.”
