Northern Co-operative Society

class=notpageimage|

Aberdeen is Scotland's 3rd largest city

Northern Co-operative Society Limited (Norco), previously named Northern Co-operative Company Limited, was a local consumer co-operative trading in Aberdeen, Scotland, from 1861 to 1993.

It was put into liquidation in 1993 as a result of financial difficulties that The Guardian newspaper attributed to “an over-ambitious building and development programme” and failed attempts to sell the entire business as a going concern, despite the successful sale of its dairy, five pharmacies, and then several supermarkets to Argyll Stores and the Co-operative Wholesale Society.

History

Scottish Co-op sold Norco's Berryden superstore to J Sainsbury, still as a going concern, in 2000.

Norco was formed in 1861 as Northern Co-operative Company, by two committees of Aberdeen residents who planned to follow the example of the Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society. The first shop was a grocery business at 51 Gallowgate, opened in July that year. The original company had a fixed capital of £1000, but in 1917, it converted into Northern Co-operative Society.

Norco House, a large department store that replaced several smaller non-food stores, was opened in George Street in 1970. The trading name of Norco was soon adopted by the entire co-operative.

In 1977, it opened a 54,000 square feet (5,000 m²) flagship superstore in the Berryden district of Aberdeen. The Berryden store was sold to the “Scottish Co-op″ retail division of the Co-operative Wholesale Society in 1993, immediately before the liquidation, and operated by them for seven years.

In April 1992, Norco declared a loss of £7 million, and the chief executive resigned. Emergency measures included the massive sell-off of businesses, and a pay freeze. Finally, in 1993, the co-operative approached Scottish Co-op with a view to a rescue merger, but this was declined.

Operations and co-operative movement

It was previously noted as the only large consumer co-operative in the UK not to be a member of the Scottish or English Co-operative Wholesale Societies.

It employed 2000 people in 1992, when the financial problems became apparent, and on going into receivership in June 1993, it had 800 employees.

Its trading area included the Aberdeenshire towns of Inverurie, Port Elphinstone and Kemnay, and at its peak, had branches and departments throughout the city of Aberdeen. Since the demise of Norco, southern organizations Scotmid Co-operative, Lothian, Borders & Angus Co-operative and the Co-operative Group have continued or revived the tradition of consumer co-operation in Aberdeenshire.

External links

• "NORCO - Records of the Northern Co-operative Society". Aberdeen City Archives.
• Seumas Milne (1993-06-18). "Scottish co-op calls in receiver". The Guardian.