After an overwhelming vote of support from shareholders at the society’s SGM, Aurivo Co-operative Society Aurivo was officially unveiled at the head office in Tubbercurry, Co Sligo last week.
The investment in a new name for the co-operative, the optimisation of existing hero brands such as Connacht Gold and the introduction of new brands such as Nutrias and Homeland are part of a significant strategy to build sustainable growth for Aurivo co-operative and its shareholders.
Speaking at the unveiling of the new name at the co-operative’s head office in Sligo, Aurivo Chairman, Padraig Gibbons said: “The massive support we got from shareholders as well as the strong direction from customers over the past two years of research highlights the importance in building a vibrant and fresh approach to our branding and Aurivo certainly does that. It’s a name we are proud to have over our door and look forward to it being a benchmark name in the history of the Irish co-operative movement.”
Aurivo Chief Executive, Aaron Forde said: “Our focus on growth and investing in our existing and new brands will continue to play a central role in our co-operative as we build for the future on the platforms of our new identities. Our growth will be with products and brands that appeal to customers and are consistent with our strong tradition, our co-operative ethos and our heritage in supporting economic life in the communities we serve. Aurivo’s business includes consumer foods, marts, dairy ingredients, animal feeds and retail stores, and our focus remains on growing the businesses and supporting our farmers through innovation, quality and value. We have already had strong success with our summer advertising campaign for Connacht Gold butter and we will continue to invest in all of Aurivo’s brands.”
The co-operative’s established retail and agri-store business will soon become known as Homeland with variants of Homeland Plus and Homeland Agri to reflect the range available in each outlet. As part of the research the company listened to consumers to ascertain the key product lines and service ethos they wanted from a best class retailer for their community. The research findings will play a key role in the ongoing development of the Homeland offering through all stores in the chain.
The marts business of the co-operative will also update their brand. Research among customers shows that the marts are generally referred to by location. Respecting this tradition the co-operative will focus the name of the marts on their location and bring that to the fore.
Meanwhile, its cycle and walk for Special Olympics Ireland, which took place yesterday in Lough Key Forest Park, raised a significant amount of money. Over the past three years, the co-op has raised in excess of €100,000 for local charities.
Pictured Aurivo’s innovative bio-mass facility. Image Aurivo