Coop Denmark, a leading Danish retailer, will merge the seven banners it now operates into three by the end of this year. The big news for the country is that its iconic supermarket chain Irma, founded in 1886, will disappear from the retail landscape. Last year, Coop phased out its Fakta discount banner, partly converting stores into the 365discount format and closing the remaining ones.
With the launch of a new strategy named “The Coop of the Future,” the retailer is unifying its banners in order to become more efficient, simpler and cheaper for customers. Irma, Kvickly, SuperBrugsen and Dagli’Brugsen will merge into either Coop, 365discount or Brugsen. Coop.dk MAD, Coop’s grocery delivery service, ceased operations last month. Coop will focus on its stores, coop.dk and the app for a strong omnichannel experience.
The news comes as Denmark just witnessed Aldi pulling out of the country and selling 114 of its stores to the Rema1000 discount chain.