My father, Alex Balfour, who has died aged 87, started with the co-operative movement as a grocery apprentice at the age of 15 and retired as chief executive of the South Mid region after 52 years’ service. He was always proud of his working-class background and was a lifelong Labour supporter.
One of 10 children of James, a blacksmith, and Jean, Alex was brought up in Cardenden, Fife, and attended Auchterderran school. He excelled there, and went to the Lochgelly Co-op as a trainee instead of going down the mines.
After national service (1946-48) he returned to Lochgelly, became shop manager and went to the Co-operative College, near Loughborough, from which he graduated in 1952. The following year he married Kath Kelly, a seamstress, and in 1954 they moved to Chepstow, Monmouthshire, where Alex was general manager of the local society. In 1961 he became CEO of the Newport society, where he introduced new management accounting systems.
Further CEO positions followed at Sheerness in Kent, Enfield in north London and, in 1975, the London society, which had a turnover of more than £150m and more than 600 shops, plus farms, hotels, bakeries, burger bars, garages and dairies. The prime minister, James Callaghan, appointed him to the Price Commission; he also served on the Retail Consortium.
In 1983 a merger resulted in him becoming CEO of the Enfield and St Albans society. In 1992, this merged with the Milton Keynes society and Alex presided over the consolidated South Mid region.
When he retired in 1995, his friend Lord (Ted) Graham of Edmonton said that Alex had cared as much for his staff, his committee colleagues and his members as he did for the balance sheet and the bottom line.
Kath predeceased him. He leaves a daughter, Fiona, and me.
