Co-op trials reduced lighting in stores to cut costs as energy bills soar

Co-op has launched a trial in a number of its stores to reduce lighting in a bid to cut costs as energy bills continue to soar.

The group, which owns funeral homes and insurance as well as supermarkets, is rolling out dimmer lighting in around 500 of its 2,500 convenience stores across the UK, which could see it reduce electricity bills by up to £4,000 a year for a single store, says the BBC.

Co-op could potentially cut its energy bills by as much as £10 million if similar savings were made across all of its stores.

A spokesman for the company said it was trialling the initiative to reduce its environmental impact and help cut costs in the long run.

The company is reviewing how it can become a “more energy efficient business, without compromising safety and still achieving a positive store environment and shopping experience” for customers, the spokesman said.

Co-op is not the first retailer to cut back on the use of lighting in stores.

Sainsbury’s lowers lighting when it is bright outside or during less busy hours as part of its long-running environmental plans to save energy and meet its goal of being net zero in its operations by 2035.

Last year, it finished the roll out of LED lighting right across its supermarkets to cut energy consumption and it also uses a system that automatically monitors and controls lighting in stores to ensure that its sites are only lit when needed.

Morrisons also dims the lights for the first and last hour of trade in most of its stores, as well as during its ‘quiet hour’ on Saturdays.