As it looks to revamp its business, including breathing new life into its insurance business, the Co-Operative Group has chosen to draw the final curtain on its crematoria.
The firm will sell five crematoria to funeral services group Dignity in a deal reportedly worth £43 million. Staff will also transfer to the new owner which currently owns 39 crematoria across the UK, as well as 725 funeral homes.
Speaking to
The Guardian about the planned sale, Richard Lancaster, the managing director of
Co-op Funeralcare, commented that the agreement will be key in the company making further investments, including in providing essential funeral services.
However, its funeral business is not the only aspect of Co-op’s business set to benefit in the coming months. The company is hoping to make a £1.3 billion investment into many aspects of its business, including insurance, as it looks to revamp the image of the 172-year-old firm. The insurance business is set to benefit from new systems, as well as an improvement in services and products.
In addition, the company is looking to implement a new blue logo, reminiscent of the cloverleaf design it used in the 1960s.
The moves come after a spate of controversies surrounding the company, including a sex and drugs scandal involving the group’s former banking chairman Paul Flowers, and the resignation of its chief executive after a £6.6 million pay package was exposed by
The Observer.
