The Co-operative Society revolutionised food retailing with the dividend, often known as 'divi', and the 'divi number', it became a part of British life.
The dividend was a financial reward to customer based on each customer's level of trade with the Co-operative. The distribution of profits on the basis of turnover rather than capital invested is a fundamental difference between a Co-operative and most private sector enterprises.
Customer sales would be recorded in ledgers in the society's stores, at the end of the collection period a proportional payment would be made to the customer.
As the societies grew, the number of customer increased and the method of using ledgers became cumbersome. As a solution the Co-operative issued stamps to customer for qualifying transactions. Customers collected the stamps on a savings card, when the card was complete the customer would use it as payment for goods or deposit into their share account.
The dividend stamps were introduced nationally 1969.
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| The Co-operative Dividend Stamp Book |
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| The Co-operative Dividend Stamp Book |
