Coop Members elect a new Director at AMM
The Coop is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Non-Executive Director to its board in Jersey following a successful vote by its Members at its Annual Meeting of Members (AMM).
Jennifer Bridge, Chairman of Jersey Literary Festival Association, and lifelong Coop shopper won the votes of her fellow members to replace John Refault who had completed his three-year term on the Coop Board.
On the success of her recent election to the Coop Board of Directors, Jennifer Bridge said: ‘I am proud to have been elected to the Coop Board of Directors. As a member and customer of our Coop, I want to play an active part in ensuring the Co-op thrives within our community. I want the Coop to be the best possible employer and retailer that it can be – returning best value to the members. I look forward to working with Members, colleagues and Directors to achieve our vision of making a real difference.’
Miss Bridge, a former Parish Deputy for St Helier, has worked previously in change management, as well serving at board level as a Chairman for the third sector. She hopes that her experience will help her to fully represent the views of both Members and colleagues with the Coop.
She added: ‘I am delighted to have the opportunity to represent my fellow Members and look forward to being an active part of our Coop’s Board of Directors.
I believe that my background, not just in education but also my prior knowledge of planning and employment legislation, will help to advise and guide decision-making for the Board and Executive team as we look forward to a new chapter of the Coop.'
This year’s AMM, which took place on 17 May in Guernsey and 18 May in Jersey, was the Society’s first ever hybrid event, allowing Members the choice to participate in-person or virtually. The event also saw Members approve dividend for the year, as well as re-elect Guernsey Non-Executive Director, Jill Clark to its Board unopposed.
President of the Board, Michael McNally, was one of the first to congratulate Jennifer Bridge on her successful appointment to the Board. He said: ‘On behalf of our members, colleagues and our board, we are pleased to welcome Jennifer to the board and very much look forward to working with her.
‘To ensure that our Board of Directors are able to completely fulfil its role of strategizing and advising the organisation, it is important that we have a dynamic board with expertise across several business areas. We believe that Jennifer’s varied skillset will strengthen our Board and help guide the Coop to make the right decisions for its members.
‘She has joined us at an exciting time for the Coop where we are working towards building back a better Coop for our Members and stepping forward together into the future post-pandemic.’
Mark Cox, Chief Executive Officer at the Channel Islands Coop, echoed the praises for Miss Bridge’s appointment. He said: ‘I believe our members felt that they shared many of Jennifer’s views and values about our Coop.
‘Our members voted for someone that they feel can represent them at Board-level at their Coop, and I believe that they have made a strong choice in electing Jennifer. She will add another dimension onto an already strong and diverse Board of Directors and will play a part in helping to make a real difference.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank John Refault, who has been an asset to the Board during the last three years and has served a successful term. We wish John all the very best from all at the Coop.’
Jennifer Bridge added: ‘I very much appreciate all those Members who voted for me. I recognise that there will be challenges ahead for our members due to inflation and cost of living increase, I want to ensure that Member’s voices are heard, and that we can overcome any challenges together.’
Jennifer Bridge joins fellow Coop Board Directors; Jon Bond, Jennifer Carnegie, Jill Clark, Mark Cox, Michael McNally, Graeme Smith, and Simon Todd.
