SOFIAH NICHOLE SALIVIO

News Editor

Manhattan Associates has published research showing that most UK shoppers prefer human staff to AI assistants for complex retail service issues. The survey covered 2,000 UK consumers.

Nine in 10 respondents said they would rather deal with a person when handling complex complaints, and 90% preferred human help when negotiating refunds. The findings suggest shoppers draw a clear line between routine tasks they may hand to automated tools and more sensitive interactions where they want staff involved.

Returns emerged as another area where human contact still dominates. The research found that 81% of shoppers prefer a human store associate over a digital assistant for product returns, compared with 19% who favour a digital assistant.

Among those who chose human support for returns, trust was the most common reason, cited by 70% of respondents, followed by accuracy at 53%. Among those who preferred a digital assistant, convenience and speed were the main factors, at 63% and 60% respectively.

The results come as retailers and supermarkets test AI shopping assistants and customer service tools across online and store operations. The data suggests consumer acceptance may depend less on whether the technology is available and more on whether shoppers believe it is suitable for the task at hand.

Selective use

There was more willingness to use AI for straightforward tasks. More than a third of respondents, 36%, said they were happy to use a digital assistant for practical jobs such as finding a returns drop-off point.

This points to a more selective approach from consumers rather than outright resistance to automation. Shoppers appear willing to use AI where the interaction is simple, low-risk and time-sensitive, but remain cautious when the issue involves money, complaints or judgement.

Martin Lockwood, Senior Director at Manhattan Associates, said the findings show a gap between the retail sector’s enthusiasm for AI and how customers want to use it.

“Conversations around AI in retail are often framed around what the technology can do. But what matters just as much to people is what they trust that technology with. This isn’t about replacing people – it’s about using AI to augment them and give them the space to do what they do best. This is what will build the kind of customer experiences that create lasting loyalty.”

Trust and accuracy

The figures underline how strongly shoppers associate human service with reliability when the outcome matters. Product returns, complaint handling and refund discussions often involve explanation, discretion and the possibility of disagreement, all of which appear to push consumers towards human interaction.

By contrast, the appeal of digital assistants was tied to faster completion of simple tasks. That suggests retailers may find greater acceptance for AI tools in areas such as navigation, information retrieval and basic service queries, rather than in dispute resolution or exception handling.

For retail operators, the findings raise practical questions about where to place AI within customer service channels. Businesses that direct automated systems to high-volume, routine interactions may face less resistance than those that use them at moments when customers expect empathy or personal judgement.

The research also points to a risk for retailers that overuse automation in areas where customers still want a person. Service changes that reduce access to staff during returns or complaints could undermine trust if shoppers feel they are being pushed into a process they do not want.

Lockwood said retailers should treat AI and staff as having different roles rather than as substitutes.

“Retailers need to look at AI and human associates as having complementary strengths, not competing ones. The data tells us exactly where consumers want speed and where they want trust. Aligning your customer experience strategy to that insight is essential as the capabilities of AI continue to expand.”

The expansion includes:

• New convenience stores
• Refurbished locations reopening after major investment
• New franchise sites across universities, hospitals and petrol forecourts

The latest openings follow 18 stores launched during Q1 2026, taking the total number of new and upgraded Co-op stores in the first half of the year to more than 40.

Co-op targets towns, villages and city communities across the UK

The investment programme stretches from the south coast of England to the Scottish Highlands, with stores opening in locations including:

• Cumbria
• Gloucestershire
• Kent
• London
• The Midlands
• Nottinghamshire
• Yorkshire
• Scotland

Co-op said the strategy is designed to strengthen local shopping access while supporting community-focused retail in both urban and rural areas.

New Co-op stores designed as community hubs

Co-op says its convenience stores are evolving beyond traditional grocery retail, offering a wider mix of services tailored to local needs.

Features available in many stores include:

• Fresh food and meal solutions
• Coffee-to-go
• Parcel collection services
• Payment services
• Rapid grocery delivery
• Online order collection
• Soft plastic recycling points

The retailer says its stores are intended to act as “anchor” locations within local communities.

Franchise expansion to accelerate in 2026

Co-op is also rapidly growing its franchise operation.

The business operated 65 franchise stores at the end of 2025 and plans to exceed 100 franchise locations during 2026.

New franchise locations include:

• University campuses
• Hospitals
• Petrol forecourts

The model allows Co-op to expand into high-footfall locations while bringing member benefits to new customer groups.

Quick commerce growth boosts local stores

Co-op says around 90% of the UK population can now access its grocery delivery services through:

• Co-op’s online shop
• Just Eat
• Deliveroo
• Uber Eats

Orders are picked directly from local stores, allowing physical branches to benefit from rising online demand while supporting faster neighbourhood deliveries.

Kate McCrae, Operations Director at Co-op, said the retailer is focused on creating stores that “serve and support communities conveniently.”

She added that local shops remain central to community life and said Co-op’s investment programme is designed to strengthen its presence across UK high streets throughout 2026.

Member pricing and British sourcing remain central to strategy

Co-op highlighted ongoing member pricing initiatives, with exclusive discounts available across stores for its more than 7 million members.

The retailer also reaffirmed its commitment to British agriculture, stating that all own-brand fresh and frozen meat products are 100% British.

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Soft plastic recycling available in stores

Many Co-op stores now offer soft plastic recycling facilities for materials often excluded from household collections, including:

• Crisp packets
• Bread bags
• Biscuit wrappers
• Ready meal lids
• Pet food pouches

The initiative forms part of the retailer’s wider sustainability programme.

Full list of new and refurbished Co-op stores opening before the end of June 2026

1. Innerleithen, Scottish Borders (EH44)
2. Pickering, Yorkshire (YO18)
3. Cruden Bay, Aberdeenshire (AB42)
4. Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland (NE64)
5. Haxby, Yorkshire (YO32)
6. Matlock, Derbyshire (DE4)
7. Bishopston, Bristol (BS7)
8. Bridgwater, Somerset (TA6)
9. Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria (LA11)
10. Birmingham University Centre, West Midlands (B15)
11. Wood Green, London (N8)
12. Stepps, Glasgow (G33)
13. Lechlade, Gloucestershire (GL7)
14. Earl’s Court, London (SW5)
15. Lydney, Gloucestershire (GL15)
16. Callerton, Tyne and Wear (NE5)
17. Ashford, Kent (TN24)
18. Newhaw, Surrey (KT15)
19. Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire (DY14)
20. Didcot, Oxfordshire (OX11) – two stores
21. Rendlesham, Suffolk (IP12)
22. Trent Bridge, Nottinghamshire (NG2)
23. Wombourne, Staffordshire (WV5)
24. Wynyard, County Durham (TS22)

18 Co-op stores already opened in 2026

Stores already launched earlier this year include:

1. Ealing, London
2. Didcot, Oxfordshire
3. Eastern Green, Coventry
4. Cove, Hampshire
5. Deal, Kent
6. Totton, Hampshire
7. Farnsfield, Nottinghamshire
8. Killearn, Stirlingshire
9. Sidmouth, Devon
10. Straits Parade, Gloucestershire
11. Westgate, Lancashire
12. Saltdean, East Sussex
13. Tarbert, Argyll and Bute
14. Worle, Somerset
15. Marske, North Yorkshire
16. Norton Heath, Essex
17. Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire
18. Cuckfield, Sussex

The online learning platform Oxbridge Home Learning made 11 of the 25 employees redundant in the weeks before administrators were called late last year.

Oxbridge Ltd, trading as Oxbridge Home Learning, offered online GCSE, A-Level and BTEC courses but effectively ceased trading in September.

In a new administrator’s report published this month, it was revealed that 432 unsecured claims have been made against the company totalling £596,000.

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It is understood some of these claims are made by students and would be put at the back of the queue in receiving, if any, money back.

In their latest report, the administrators also revealed there are “a number of potential avenues for further investigation and enquiries” that have been identified, but would not elaborate.

What’s more, the business and certain assets of the company were sold in October to Birmingham-based Home Learning Ltd, the new report says.

The transaction was completed in December, and mostly included the intellectual property of Oxbridge worth almost £55,000.

Students have been left in limbo as a result of Oxbridge Home Learning entering administration (Image: Jan Vašek from Pixabay)

This is a company with Matthew Jones as the director, the same director as Oxbridge Ltd, Companies House documents show.

Administrators at Forvis Mazars LLP said the wheels started to come off the business when in 2024 a government-funded scheme no longer fitted with what Oxbridge provided resulting in it losing its most profitable work.

“Due to this, the vocational courses became unprofitable but this matter was not identified in a timely manner,” joint administrator Rebecca Jane Dacre said.

External funding was found from third parties to help increase cashflow, but Oxbridge was unable to maintain the loan repayments of £97,000 per month.

During this time, the cashflow difficulties resulted in “significant rent arrears accruing”, the administrator added, which resulted in the termination of the contract in August.

“Further loan facilities were terminated in July 2025, with pressure increasing for immediate repayment,” Ms Dacre said.

“Critical creditors, who provided exam results, were threatening to withdraw due to the significant arrears and threatening to issue a winding up petition.”

The BBC reported one 17-year-old student from Banbury who said it is “very stressful” for students applying for university.

Student Amelia, whose surname was not disclosed, said: “I don’t know what’s going to happen next because I had a whole plan of what was going to happen with university. But obviously universities require A-level grades.”

The business has debts of £2,561,715 – although this could be higher with the pupils – owed to tutors, companies and HMRC.

Documents revealing the state of what remains of the company reveal HMRC is owed £737,884 in unpaid VAT and PAYE.