Susan Smith, Staff Reporter
COK Cooperative Credit Union is to open a full service centre in Montego Bay next month. The branch will be located at 40 Market Street near the busy business hub of Sam Sharpe Square and is to be headed by an experienced banker hailing from the area.
Marketing officer Sophia Lewis describes the new branch as the "first of its kind to be located outside of the Kingston Metropolis area."
Formerly known as the City of Kingston Cooperative Credit Union, COK was formed 38 years ago and currently has three branches islandwide. They are located in Cross Roads, Kingston, Half Way Tree St. Andrew and Portmore, St. Catherine.
GEOGRAPHIC SPACE
At present, the bond under which the Credit Union now operates, allows it to register persons and set up businesses outside of this geographic space, a practice which was formerly restricted.
Marketing and public relations manager Dennis Hickey said the company changed its bond under the cooperative act in 2001 to accommodate not just the people living and working in Kingston, St. Andrew and St. Catherine.
In 2001, the credit union made subtle changes to its logo and re-branded.
Declining to state the cost of the expansion or the project earnings it will bring to the business, Mr. Hickey said, "We do regular surveys and feasibility studies and have realised an increasing need for a full service centre in the area."
COK already has approximately 1,000 members from Montego Bay.
"These members will now have the opportunity to conduct business at a more convenient location," he added.
The new branch will employ about 10 persons, most of whom will be recruited from the community. "We want to create a Mo-Bay feel to this branch," said Mr. Hickey.
