A new buddying scheme which partners rural community-owned businesses with co-op retail societies is being launched by Plunkett UK. The initiative, announced at the start of the Co-operatives UK Co-op Retail Conference in Glasgow on 19-21 March, will use the scheme to formally link community shops with their closest co-operative retailer, enabling both community and co-op retail managers to learn from each other and grow their businesses together.
Plunkett UK, a charity which supports over 860 rural community-owned businesses, already runs the Co-op Retail Society Network. With members including OurCoop, Radstock, Southern and Co-op Group, this initiative aims to grow the size and impact of the rural community-owned business sector by connecting co-operatives and enabling the model to flourish in rural areas where it would not be financially viable for a retail society to trade directly.
Hannah Barrett, partnerships manager at Plunkett UK, said: “The idea behind the buddy scheme is to connect the community-owned shop, pub or café with their nearest co-op retail shop manager. In this way, they can exchange advice, expertise and experience and learn from each other. However, the scheme is much more than just knowledge exchange; it is about growing both businesses to increase sales and better meet the needs of the communities they both serve.”
The buddying scheme means that someone running a community-owned business will now have access to the type of support that retail shop managers currently enjoy through being part of a much larger retail society. In return, the co-op manager can discuss issues from stocking co-op-labelled products to how best to engage with the local community. The aim is to nurture partnerships which have the potential to increase sales for both businesses by formalising an arrangement which in the past has been absent or based on an ad hoc arrangement.
Gemma Sills, head of partnerships at Plunkett UK, added: “The new buddying scheme is about providing additional support to our members and bolstering their retail knowledge. Now they have access to both the retail experience that Plunkett UK has to offer and the sales expertise which co-op managers can share. It’s a great example of co-operative principles 5 and 6 in action – education, training and information combined with cooperation among co-operatives.”
Plunkett UK currently supports 865 open and trading community businesses across the UK, including 98 in Scotland. This represents 10% of all independent trading co-ops in the UK. Plunkett UK hopes to have the buddying scheme up and running in time for UK Co-ops Fortnight, which will be celebrated between 22 June and 5 July 2026.
Find all our coverage of the 2026 Co-op Retail Conference here.
