The London Co-operative Society (LCS) was a consumer co-operative society in the United Kingdom. History The Society was formed in September 1920 by the amalgamation of the Stratford Co-operative Society and the Edmonton Co-operative Society, two of the largest societies in the London Metropolitan area, forming the largest retail co-operative society in the United Kingdom. Initially, the LCS headquarters were located at 54 Maryland Street, Stratford, E.15. A key agreement reached with the London Trades Council and London Labour Party led to a plan to develop in Central London a meeting centre consisting of restaurant, general store, club and hall accommodations to address an unmet need of the city. In 1921, the LCS was also joined by the West London Society, the Kingston Society and the Co-operative Brotherhood Trust. In addition, the Society also took over two branches of the Staines Co-operative Party. The consolidation of co-operative societies in the Greater London area continued until 1938, with the absorption of Hendon Co-operative Society in 1925, the North West London Co-operative Society in 1928, the Epping Co-operative Society in 1929, the Yiewsley Co-operative Society in 1931, the Willesden Junction Railway Society in 1935 and the Radlett Co-operative Society in 1938. Hence, the LCS was able to extend its area of the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Hertfordshire and Surrey. The company's general manager through part of this period (1924–1933) was Sidney Foster, who in 1933 went on to manage the Milk Marketing Board. By 1946, LCS had reached a membership of 832,670 members, the highest of any of Britain's co-operatives, and had an annual revenue of . Also in 1946, LCS acquired 200 Oxford Street in London, which had been the headquarters of the BBC Overseas Service since 1941; LCS moved its headquarters into the building in 1949. By 1952, the LCS and its associated co-operative organisations, the major being the London Co-operative Chemists Limited, had over 550 establishments of sales and services, varying from large department stores to small grocery shops. By 1963, the London Society was noted as being the largest co-operative of its kind in the world, which was led by John Stonehouse as President at the time, who also served as a Labour Member of Parliament. In 1981, Co-operative Retail Services acquired LCS, which had been losing millions of pounds. Operations and influence The LCS played a large part in the national co-operative movement and was a member