Co-op reports £126m loss after cyber attack as CEO quits

Retail giant Co-op has plunged into a £126m loss and announced the departure of its CEO as it suffers from the from the aftermath of a huge cyber attack. Group CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq will leave the company after nearly seven years in charge, with board member Kate Allum stepping in as interim.

The supermarket chain is gearing up to implement significant cost reductions in the forthcoming year, with plans to trim £200m from its expenditure by 2026.

Co-op's cyber attack in April of the year resulted in data theft affecting all of its 6.5 million members and – along with other retail cyber incidents last year – led the government to commit a £210m package to thwart future attacks.

The retailer reported a pre-tax loss of £126m for the year ending January 2026, a stark contrast to its £45m profit the year, attributing £107m of this profitability downturn directly to the cyber attack.

The incident further inflicted an £86m hit on margins and £21m of additional, non-recurring costs, as reported by City AM .

Year-on-year revenue dipped by 2.3 per cent as the company lost "momentum" due to the cyber attack, according to the firm.

Debbie White, Chair of Co-op, said: "2025 was a challenging year, but those challenges have helped us reshape Co-op for the future. Despite a cyber attack and tough market conditions, our colleagues have shown incredible resilience, keeping communities served and essential services running.

"To get back on track, we have adjusted our commercial strategy and strengthened our partner offer while substantially growing active membership."

Ms Khoury-Haq said she is stepping down to allow the retailer to progress beyond the incident, She added: "Following last year's cyber attack, the organisation is now ready to deliver on an ambitious strategy of stabilisation and transformation.

"This extends beyond the timeframe I had planned for my CEO tenure, and now is the right moment to hand over to leadership that can commit to seeing the strategy through."

Ms Allum will be charged with supervising a drastic cost-cutting programme, as the retailer vows to slash £200m of annual operating costs by the end of the year.

Co-op invested £318m of capital into stores and technology in the past year, as it aims to move forward from the cyber attack.

Revenue at Co-op's retail division dropped by two per cent to £7bn, though the firm claimed it achieved one per cent real-term growth if the impact of the cyber attack is excluded.

The company's Life Services division – which encompasses its funeral business – saw revenue growth of four per cent to £418m, but this would have been as high as seven per cent if not for the attack, the company said.

Co-op reaffirmed its commitment to British farming, as it continues to source 100 per cent of own-brand meat from British farmers, having spent £700m on its UK agricultural suppliers in 2025.