Do Son 
Shelves at the British retail chain Co-op remain partially empty two weeks after a cyberattack disrupted the company’s core logistics systems. Despite corporate assurances of a gradual recovery, store employees and customers across the country continue to face widespread product shortages.
In April, Co-op announced it had taken precautionary measures after detecting unauthorized access attempts targeting its IT infrastructure. At the time, the company claimed the impact would be confined to back-office operations and call centers. However, CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq later confirmed “significant disruption” and the compromise of customer and member data. The precise details of the breach remain undisclosed, though sources suggest that attackers may still maintain access to Co-op’s internal network.
The shutdown of several IT services has severely impacted Co-op’s logistics: shipments from distribution centers have dropped to less than 20% of normal volume, directly affecting store inventory. The most pronounced shortages involve perishable animal products such as meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs — items prioritized due to strict regulations surrounding expired goods. Simultaneously, many stores are struggling to stock fresh fruits, vegetables, canned goods, and tobacco products.
A Co-op employee expressed doubt that normal operations would resume before June. He noted that a similar situation persists at another cyberattack-hit chain, Marks & Spencer, which is reportedly “two weeks ahead of us, yet still grappling with the aftermath.”
A Co-op spokesperson stated that all stores remain open and that deliveries are gradually resuming. Special attention is being given to the supply of chilled, frozen, and essential goods. The company acknowledged, however, that some locations may not yet offer their full product range and issued an apology to customers for any inconvenience caused.
Even if the logistics systems were instantly restored, employees note that returning to pre-incident supply levels would still take weeks due to the complexity of the supply chain. Company representatives declined to comment on whether current shipment volumes match those prior to the attack.
In some regions, other retailers are helping to bridge the supply gap, but in remote areas the situation remains strained. On Scotland’s Isle of Islay, for example, where Co-op is the sole major grocery outlet, a temporary supply framework has been introduced prioritizing deliveries to “critical” locations.
As a consumer cooperative, Co-op employs more than 50,000 people and operates over 3,000 outlets across the United Kingdom, including grocery stores, insurance services, and funeral care. In the previous fiscal year, the company reported a pre-tax profit of approximately £161 million on revenues of £11.3 billion. As a non-publicly traded entity, Co-op is not obligated to disclose the financial ramifications of the incident to investors.
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