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Co-op: The People's Business
Abstract
BirchallJohnston. Co-op: The People's Business. Manchester: Manchester University Press; distributed by St. Martin's Press, New York, N.Y. 1994. Pp. x, 217. $49.95. ISBN 0-7190-4421-9. - Volume 27 Issue 4 - Christopher P. Hosgood
... This was the period within which the market society grew progressively and the crisis left factory workers in poverty and despair. In response to this, the workers gradually started to be part of a conscious and deliberative cooperative movement; they learned to become "co-operators" (Birchall, 1994). ...
... As a result every customer of the shop then became a member hence had a true stake in the business. This propelled the formation of their cooperative society (Birchall, 1994). This society is regarded a prototype and foundation for the development of the modern cooperative movement. ...
... Knowing the essence of cooperatives, large scale farmers began corn milling and distilling potato on large scale. Forming cooperatives further became a requirement for the state to assist farmers with loans and grants (Birchall, 1994). Birchall (1994) notes that being cautious, practical and experience, the Rochdale"s Equitable Pioneers society set out rules based on fundamental principles in 1844. ...
Most countries through various international conventions recognize housing as a basic human need. It is the desire of every government to see that its people have access to decent and affordable housing. However, many housing supply and demand problems exist in both developed and developing countries, though in different facet and levels of severity. While there are usually acute housing shortages and generally poor conditions in urban areas across many developing countries, the challenges in Europe, inter alia, are related to a wide range of factors such housing for the marginalized, tenure polarization and deterioration of social housing dwellings. Though housing development is closely knit to country- specific political and socio economic history, there are common strands that cut across contemporary cities. Initial housing development efforts were purely based on cooperative worker efforts, private landlords and philanthropist initiatives in the early 1900s. There was however massive government participation in the turn of the 1950. Measures were usually directed to building dwellings in mass housing neighborhoods to house as many people as possible. Emphasis was hence on quantity. The socio-economic and demographic changes in cities have shifted the focus in the housing discourse as new problems and issues emerge. The Study therefore concludes that amid these changes, the third- sector particularly new forms of housing cooperatives are still a valuable means to addressing some of these problems through integrated, innovative and local strategies to dealing with both spatial and social challenges. Some perspectives based on the cooperative housing approach are provided using Ghana as reference for developing countries.
... There was also sometimes a period of confusion, when promoters were unsure about which stakeholder to put at the centre of the cooperative. William King set up cooperative stores that were both consumer and producer owned (with artisans bringing goods to sell through them), until it was realised that their interests could clash (Birchall, 1994). Raiffeisen set up rural banks in which investors had ownership rights, until he realised that they had to be owned by the farmers (Birchall, 2013). ...
... Firstly, with company law itself in its infancy, the concept of organisations engaging in economic activity for purposes of public benefit had not yet materialised itself. While co-operative enterprise received formal recognition and legal protection under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act of 1852, it took several decades of lobbying and legislatory adaptation, learning by doing and capital accumulation before the growing number of consumer co-operatives could venture into production (Birchall, 1994(Birchall, , 1997Snaith, 1996). Wilson, Webster and Vorberg-Rugh (2013) describe co-operative law at that time as restrictive, limiting shareholder investment and holding members liable for debt, suggesting it was unlikely to be conducive to risky and capital intensive investments. ...
The clean-tech transition has come hand in hand with market and resource differentiation patterns that have created opportunities for heightened engagement of citizens in heat and power generation, potentially emancipating them from their roles as captive consumers (van Vliet, 2005). New opportunities for diverse and civic ownership models are made possible by distributed renewable generation technologies and their ability to be widely integrated into the power network as a result of advances in network management and control (Catney et al., 2014; Johnson & Hall, 2014; Lehtonen & Nye, 2009; Morris, 2013; Walker & Cass, 2007). This chapter maps out the development of ‘community energy’ in the United Kingdom, defined as collective and citizen- led heat and power generation projects that are owned and managed by for- or non-profit organisations operating across a geographically defined population (Doci, Vasileiadou, & Petersen, 2015; Ruggiero, Onkila, & Kuittinen, 2014; Scottish Government, 2014; Walker & Cass, 2007; Walker & Devine-Wright, 2008).
... There was also sometimes a period of confusion, when promoters were unsure about which stakeholder to put at the centre of the cooperative. William King set up cooperative stores that were both consumer and producer owned (with artisans bringing goods to sell through them), until it was realised that their interests could clash (Birchall, 1994). Raiffeisen set up rural banks in which investors had control, until he realised that they had to be owned by the farmers (Birchall, 2013). ...
Multistakholding is a way to share, or democratise, decision-making power among stakeholders within organisations. Anaysis, however, has not fully considered the role of this form of private governance. This paper builds on the observation of past and recent governance experiences in cooperative firms, where sharing decision-making power was associated with single stakeholdership. Though single stakeholdership seemed to be the preferred solution so far, recently multi-stakeholder governance has become more prominent also in cooperatives. In light of this evidence, this paper has three aims. The first is to set out some of the theoretical arguments for and against multi-stakeholder governance, to look at examples of multi-stakeholder models in practice, and to generate from this a set of research questions.
A useful distinction to assess how multi-stakholdership can be applied in practice is between ownership and strategic control. We then use this distinction to present examples taken from the experiences of Eroski (the big Iberian retailer), iCoop (the Korean cooperative that brings together farmers and consumers), and Italian social cooperatives, which place the desirability of multi-stakeholding as one of their constitutional features. Our conclusions emphasise the necessity of improving this field of enquiry by outlining a research agenda on multi-stakeholder cooperatives.
... Industry norms are not a suitable benchmark for determining customer value in this connection; consideration of the voice dependent-mechanisms should truly reflect the change in customers' value expectations. Originally not only business entities but movements with a cause(Mills 2008;Birchall 1994), consumer cooperatives are about bringing change that enhances the lives of their customer-owners (e.g.,van Oorschot et al. 2010). To assess the customer value created on the basis of voice-dependent mechanisms, we have to look at the potential that customers possess as a managerial resource: consumer cooperatives are able to put their customers behind the steering wheel, in figurative terms, via governance practices that IOFs do not possess. ...
Customer-owned insurance companies (mutuals) are prominent actors in the insurance industry and have significantly increased in market share in the relatively recent past. However, the discussion related to mutuals lacks a systematic and multidisciplinary literature review providing a comprehensive overview of current scientific knowledge. The purpose for the paper is threefold. It categorises the existing research by year of publication, scientific journal, type of article, and type of insurance considered. Secondly, it identifies approaches and themes that capture the nature and content of the research on mutual insurance companies. Finally, it analyses how the literature has defined mutual insurance. In the process, the work critically evaluates the current status of the research on mutuals and sets out the implications for future research and work by practitioners.
... In England, the Sheerness Economical Society in Kent started a co-operative shop linked to a bakery in 1816. In the next decade the London Co-operative and Economical Society set up the first cooperative newspaper called 'The Economist' and started bulk buying goods for the needs of their members, estimating a savings of a third in their living expenses (Birchall, 1994). ...
As with profit orientated entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs apply new perspectives and innovations and significantly change what things or services are produced, how they are produced and/or how their organizations operate. There have been many such social entrepreneurs and innovators down the ages. We start by looking at some examples of these before considering social entrepreneurship in business related organizations and civic entrepreneurship in government.
... In England, the Sheerness Economical Society in Kent started a co-operative shop linked to a bakery in 1816. In the next decade the London Co-operative and Economical Society set up the first cooperative newspaper called 'The Economist' and started bulk buying goods for the needs of their members, estimating a savings of a third in their living expenses (Birchall, 1994). ...
This chapter concludes the examination of theoretical perspectives on entrepreneurship undertaken in Part II. Chapters 3 to 6 demonstrated that economic approaches have generally focused on the function of entrepreneurship in the economic system, rather than on the personal characteristics of those individuals who are entrepreneurial. However, economic theorists have recognized the importance of sociological factors such as social background and cultural attitudes, and psychological attributes such as creativity and imagination. In economic approaches the prime motivation to undertake entrepreneurial activities is utility maximization generally based upon profit and the intrinsic gains to the individual of undertaking entrepreneurial activity are relegated to relatively minor importance. Some would argue that without profit there is no entrepreneurship (although this view ignores the view of entrepreneurship as a form of behaviour).
... Firstly, with company law itself in its infancy, the concept of organisations engaging in economic activity for purposes of public benefit had not yet materialised itself. While co-operative enterprise received formal recognition and legal protection under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act of 1852, it took several decades of lobbying and legislatory adaptation, learning by doing and capital accumulation before the growing number of consumer co-operatives could venture into production (Birchall, 1994;Birchall, 1997;Snaith, 1996). describe co-operative law at that time as restrictive, limiting shareholder investment and holding members liable for debt, suggesting it was unlikely to be conducive to risky and capital intensive investments. ...
This chapter describes the development and character of community renewable energy in the UK across distinct periods of energy governance. Drawing on peer-reviewed literature and primary and secondary accounts of socio-economic, technological, institutional governance and policy change processes in the UK to identify distinct historical periods in energy governance, it analyses their influence on patterns of ownership and institutional space for community energy between 1870 to 2015.
... The third type of co-operative, retail co-operatives, are where customers gain a share of the profits. They have been in existence since at least the early nineteenth century with the Sheerness Economical Society in Kent starting in 1816 as a cooperative shop linked to a bakery (Birchall, 1994). They have often involved partnerships with other co-operatives, for example through bulk purchasing. ...
... This included securing access to unadulterated food at a fair price (the cooperative movement), protection against sickness, funeral expenses, death of the bread-winner and other catastrophes (friendly societies and mutual insurers), and access to finance to build and own their homes (building society movement). 2 Self-help was the starting point and engine of all of this, resulting in a 30% share of the retail market, 19 million members of friendly societies and a building society in nearly every town. ...
In looking at reform, it is important to understand the longer heritage of the public sector. This suggests a future drawing on mutual ideas and principles as a powerful alternative to private ownership. It involves a new approach to organisational design which underpins a reformed service delivery model. This is examined through the example of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing, the UK's first mutual social housing provider, owned and controlled by its tenant and employee members.
... The weavers faced harsh working conditions and low wages, and they could not afford the high prices of food and household goods. They decided that by pooling their scarce resources and working together they could access basic goods at a lower price (Birchall, 1994; ICA 2005). The model was widely copied, with many adopting the Pioneers' values and principles which have since become the basis for co-operatives globally (Birchall, 1997). ...
The agenda for " personalisation " is driving huge changes in public services for adult social care and health services in the UK, with profound implications for service users, commissioners, and providers. This paper is about the intersection of personalisation and the cooperative tradition, with its emphasis on mutual aid and value-led enterprise. Personalised services imply fewer block contracts between state agencies and providers, and more individual service users selecting and purchasing their own services either directly or through intermediaries. Funding systems designed to enable self directed support, in the form of direct payments and individual budgets, are established in social care provided by local authorities.
... Put very simply, most small-scale financial experiments prior to 1970 were about challenging/displacing political and economic elites in favour of the wider population. Notable experiments within this radical tradition in just England alone would include the Friendly Societies promoted by the radicals and proto-trade unions in the 1700s and 1800s (Thompson 1963) and the cooperative movement that emerged in the mid-1800s and gave rise to networks of cooperative banks (Birchall 1994). However, as Mader (2011) argues in a comparison of microcredit and the German cooperative banks, the modern microcredit model is not about mounting a bottom-up challenge to dominant political and economic elites, so much as quietly legitimising and perpetuating them. ...
This paper looks at the microcredit model made famous by Dr. Muhammad Yunus and explains the key reasons why it has failed as a poverty reduction and local development instrument. It also briefly analyses some of the reactions to this failure by the microcredit industry and why many microcredit supporters nevertheless still stand behind the model in spite of its failure.
... Prior to the advent of what came to be called the 'welfare state', co-operative and mutual self-help organisations were formed in the nineteenth century to meet common needs and challenge wider inequalities – most notably consumer cooperative societies, friendly societies and building societies. These grew into significant businesses and social organisations, at times even becoming a threat to private for-profit companies (Bonner 1961; Yeo 1988; Birchall 1994; Gurney 1996; Cordery 2003). However, the market share and position of these societies would gradually decline, especially in the second half of the twentieth century. ...
... One of the main incentives for participation in consumer co-ops used to be that they declared an annual dividend on purchases; there was intense speculation among ordinary members about the rate, and much holding to account of directors when dividends were lower than expected. 68 The problem with water and transport is that dividends are more likely to be returned in lower prices in the future rather than cash payments, and members face the collective action problem of not knowing how much their personal participation has counted. ...
... Formation of Co-Operative Society to bring workers together in a collaborative model (Birchall 1994) Current movements in union relations that are strained as a result of the economic downturn. ...
Operations management is a key function in the modern organisation and an important area of study in the business school. Like many subjects it remains separated from the business history community. The practice of operations management can gain meaningful and significant lessons from proper consideration of the historical antecedents of current practices. Unfortunately, more than any other business area, operations management has a habit of forgetting the lessons of the past and ‘reinventing the wheel’. The purpose of this paper is to emphasise the value of historical analysis in operations management, assess the level of historical coverage of the development of operations within that subject area (taking a review of OM textbooks as a proxy), and highlight the valuable opportunities for the business history community to engage with their operations colleagues to better guide the next generation of operations management education and practice.
... CF is part of a larger group of diverse businesses from travel to the Co-operative Bank. CF is different from most other UK retailers; it was founded in 1844 on a set of co-operative values and principles that guide the organisation (Birchall, 1994). The Co-op is consumer owned and democratically controlled (one member one vote) by its members, ordinary shoppers. ...
The aim of this paper is to further develop the recent discourse surrounding the mainstreaming of fair trade (FT) products, particularly the strategic responses to fair trade by UK retailers. The research investigates the characteristics of a values‐driven retailer via the exemplar of Co‐operative Food (CF), a UK food retailer. The paper draws on a longitudinal case study (1999–2007) of CF and includes findings from a series of in‐depth semi‐structured interviews with key informants. The paper develops a set of fair trade characteristics for a values‐driven business in the UK retail sector. The paper also illustrates the importance of both social resources and ethical relationship marketing in ensuring the success of a FT retailing strategy. The values‐driven business model investigated in this paper demonstrates the importance of intangibles such as relationships and networks, particularly with upstream stakeholders such as cocoa farmers.
... 392-400. 18 See B. Williamson, The Best Butter in the World, (1994 and J. Birchall, Co-op:the peoples' business, (Manchester 1994). 19 B.W. Marion, W.F. Mueller, R.W. Cotterill F.E. Geithman and J.R. Schmelzer., ...
... Civil society has responded to the predicament of marginalised producers by the rapid emergence of the FT market both within the UK and internationally (Barratt Brown, 1993; Crane and Matten, 2004 Bank. CF is different from most other UK retailers; it was founded in 1844 on a set of co-operative values and principles that guide the organisation (Birchall 1994). The Co-op is consumer owned and democratically controlled (one member one vote) by its members, ordinary shoppers. ...
Civil society has responded to the predicament of marginalised producers by the rapid emergence of the fair trade market both within the UK and internationally.
Co-operative Food is part of a larger group of diverse businesses from travel to The Co-operative Bank. The Co-op is consumer owned and democratically controlled (one member one vote) by its members, ordinary shoppers.
Co-operative Food’s success in mainstreaming fair trade demonstrates the important role played by social resources in ethical relationship marketing.
... In the MEDCs, co-operative sectors have always been autonomous and free of government control. They follow the 'Rochdale principles', established by the Rochdale Pioneers in 1844, of one member one vote and distribution of surpluses through a patronage refund (Birchall, 1994). Their fortunes have waxed and waned according to the extent of competition within each business sector, the quality of their management, and how well they have met the needs of their members. ...
Newly emerging nations in the developing world put great efforts into developing multi-purpose co-operative societies that, it was hoped, would bring the benefits of development to the rural poor. With some exceptions these failed to live up to expectations; having been created by governments they remained controlled by the interests of government, party and civil service. Then, under structural adjustment programmes they either collapsed or were reformed. Some new, more genuine co-operative sectors are now emerging. As they do, co-operatives face new challenges brought about by continuing processes of economic globalisation, the IT revolution, and changes in the national and international balance of powers. To survive and thrive, the ability for co-operative organisations to network effectively at both the local level and beyond is becoming increasingly important.This paper seeks to examine the relevance of the numerous theoretical perspectives on network formation and network management to the newly-emerging co-operative sectors in the developing world. Such networks are being built both within the co-operative sector itself (e.g. through federation) and with a range of other bodies, each locally, nationally and internationally. The paper seeks to provide a framework for understanding the processes that drive the formation of relationships, networks and partnerships, and asks questions of how such alliances can be governed and managed effectively.
... Small self-service shops, referred to as 'mini-markets' or 'help-yourself' shops by many UK shoppers, increased in number from an estimated 483 in 1950, to 7,750 in 1960 (Henksmeier 1960: 16; Jefferys and Knee 1962: 106). According to the accepted definition of a supermarket (see Rice 1959), in 1950 there were an estimated 50 supermarkets in Britain (Birchall 1994), rising to 367 in 1960 (McClelland 1962: 156) and 3400 in 1969 (The Nielsen Researcher 1970). In terms of market share, self-service (including supermarkets) accounted for an estimated 15 per cent in 1959, rising to 64 per cent in 1969 (The Nielsen Researcher 1970). ...
We examine the development of self-service grocery shopping from a consumer perspective. Using qualitative data gathered through a nationwide biographical survey and oral histories, it was possible to go beyond contemporary market surveys which pay insufficient attention to shopping as a socially and culturally embedded practice. We use the conceptual framework of the life course to demonstrate how grocery shopping is a complex activity, in which the retail encounter is shaped by the specific interconnection of different retail formats and their geographies, alongside consumer characteristics and their situational influences. Consumer reactions to retail modernization must be understood in relation to the development of consumer practices at points of transition and stability within the life course. These practices are accessed by examining retrospective consumer narratives about food shopping.
... The first form covers the retail activities set up by consumer co-operatives in which individual members usually have just one vote. They normally trace their principles and practices back to the Rochdale Pioneers in the 1840s (Birchall, 1994). The current co-operative principles are set out in Table I but their application may vary by country. ...
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the retail internationalisation activities of consumer co‐operatives.
Design/methodology/approach
Conducts a survey of the available information on these internationalisation activities.
Findings
A survey of the available information on these internationalisation activities shows that they have been restricted to a relatively small number of co‐operatives and that the “failure” rate has been very high. Some suggestions are made as to why the co‐operatives have been unable to convert their early‐mover advantages into sustainable retail networks.
Research limitations/implications
The restricted nature of the sample means that these exploratory findings are primarily descriptive. Further, in‐depth work with a sample of these co‐operatives would help us to better understand the reasons for the moves into and out of various international activities.
Practical implications
Expands the literature on retail failure in general and also provides some more depth to the literature on the internationalisation of co‐operatives.
Originality/value
Whilst there have been significant volumes of research into the internationalisation of investor‐owned retailers and of producer co‐operatives, particularly the “new generation” co‐operatives, there has been very little prior work undertaken in this area.
... Equally significant, an increasing amount of self-service retailing was taking place in larger supermarket formats (McClelland 1962: 155). In 1950 around 50 supermarkets were in existence, swelling in number to 572 by 1961 (McClelland, 1962; Birchall, 1994). ...
In this paper we address the related issues of retail innovation, changing shopping practices, and shopping geographies. We do so in relation to the spread of self-service grocery stores, and particularly the supermarket, in the postwar retail environment of Britain (1950 – 70), arguing that this juncture provides a propitious opportunity to study the relationship between changing practices of retailing and consumption. We highlight shoppers’ selective adoption of new self-service formats in relation to certain product categories and argue that this can be explained in part by reference to the socially embedded nature of women food shoppers’ behaviours and in particular the influence of contemporary notions of the ‘good housewife’. We support our argument by reference to a wide range of contemporary documentary material relating to postwar shopping including market research reports, the publications of local consumer groups, and selected retailer and government archive sources.
In 1912, the Anglican missionary organization the Church Army reported that open-air meetings in Blackley, a Manchester village, had been particularly successful because of ‘the great gun of the lantern’ (Church Army Gazette, 20 April 1912, 8). Taking up this military expression, this article deals with the question why and how diverse organizations active in social work utilized ‘the’ lantern as a ‘weapon’. The focus is on lantern performances in events designed for religious and socio-political education in Britain: I identify the exhibition practices that the Church Army and the Co-operative movement utilized to attract, to impress and to (permanently) bond their audiences. The main suggestion is that these organizations, establishing a strategy which consisted in providing their audiences with sensory, intimate and interactive experiences, tremendously contributed to establish the ‘screen’ as a centre for visual communication. From a more global viewpoint, social organizations contributed to establish basic mechanisms of bonding audiences to visual media.
This article uses company archival data, supported by evidence from the trade press, to examine the development of the manufacturer–retailer relationship in the case of Cadbury and the supermarket retailers distributing its products in the period 1953–1975. It reveals the influence upon Cadbury’s marketing strategies and practices of the increasing importance of supermarket retailing in relation to the confectionery as well as the grocery goods trades. It also provides new insight into the significance of these changes for Cadbury’s relationships with other manufacturers, and with small-scale retailers typified by confectioners, tobacconists and newsagents.
The consumer cooperative enterprise is becoming an increasingly noteworthy company form. Various forms of sharing economy and recent initiatives in collaborative consumption further amplify the relevance of a company form wherein the members have a dual role, acting both as owners and as customers. Today, cooperatives that are based on customer ownership can be found in banking, insurance, and retailing, where they account for about a trillion US dollars in annual revenue. Notwithstanding the relevance of cooperatives and their unique characteristics, which are partly contradictory within the framework of investor-owned firms, this company form and customer ownership itself have remained under-explored in consumer marketing research. Customer ownership may hold major implications for how customers ultimately perceive value, which, in turn, influences the very foundations for companies’ competitiveness: customer satisfaction, repurchase intention, and recommendation. Consequently, the purpose of this conceptual study is to uncover the value potential of customer ownership. As a result, a conceptual framework that addresses the value potential of customer ownership is proposed. In addition, the work identifies what kind of value customers can perceive through customer ownership and how that value can be defined and created in consumer cooperatives. The paper concludes with a discussion of both theoretical and managerial implications emerging from the value potential of customer ownership.
Economic justice is deeply rooted in the economic structure and processes of society. Cooperative economy, unlike private enterprise, is established based upon collective ownership of the means of production and is capable of leading to social justice at various levels of economic development. This chapter begins with a theoretical overview of cooperative economy and how it realizes economic justice. Next, a brief history of the cooperative movement in Iran and its specific path of development are discussed. Present conditions of the cooperative movement in Iran and major obstacles in its further development are enumerated and described in greater details. In particular, the chapter will focus on cooperative self-help struggle against the insatiable, craving private sector and state’s resistance to forming any possible future mass economic movement.
Der Beitrag stellt das sich verändernde Verhältnis von Mitgliederbasis und Geschäftsführung in europäischen Konsumgenossenschaften des 19. und 20. Jahrhundert in den Vordergrund. Die demokratischen Potentiale und zivilgesellschaftlichen Funktionen der Konsumgenossenschaften werden herausgearbeitet. Weder hat es je einen basisdemokratischen Urzustand gegeben, noch zeichnet sich ein allgemeiner Trend zum Verfall oder zur Oligarchisierung ab. Vielmehr beobachtet man ein Auf und Ab im Wandel der Zeit und ausgeprägte Unterschiede zwischen den Ländern. Die heutige Situation in Europa ist vielfältig, das Internet bietet neue Möglichkeiten, das Terrain ist politisierbar.
In a predominantly capitalist economy, in which firms are owned by shareholders who are distinct from the producers and consumers of the product and whose primary interest is in profit, how can the consumer interest be safeguarded? From a market-liberal perspective, it is enough to ensure that markets are relatively free so that consumers have a choice of product and of supplier. Because markets do not always work in the way that classical economic theory requires — because there is a danger of monopoly supply, asymmetry of information between consumers and producers, negative externalities, and so on — a range of safeguards have, in practice, had to be set up. In Britain for instance, there is a growing body of consumer law which protects consumers from the entry of dangerous or counterfeit products into the market, which regulates the conditions of sale, and enables complaint and redress (Lowe and Woodroffe, 1995).
Bien qu’au cours des dernieres decennies les chercheurs aient temoigne d’un regain d’interet pour l’histoire de la « societe de consommation », il est etonnant de constater que le role qu’ont joue les cooperatives de consommateurs en Grande-Bretagne reste peu etudie. Un tel oubli n’est pas sans consequence, dans la mesure ou le mouvement cooperatif a, depuis sa naissance au XIXe siecle, beaucoup contribue a ameliorer la situation materielle des consommateurs issus des classes ouvrieres. L’histoire de ce mouvement apporte ainsi un eclairage specifique sur des processus sociaux et economiques plus larges. Cet article se propose d’etudier comment les consommateurs ouvriers britanniques organises ont repondu au developpement de la consommation de masse durant la periode qui a suivi la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Nous nous interesserons plus particulierement aux relations entre le mouvement cooperatif et le Parti travailliste afin d’expliquer comment celles-ci ont pu influer sur la vision que les associes cooperateurs ont du marche et de la maniere dont il devrait etre regule dans l’interet des consommateurs.
Compared with the activities of its European counterparts, the sporting and recreational pursuits of the British labour movement are less well known. Yet the co-operative movement organised an impressive range of sports clubs, competitions and events. Whereas previous studies have examined the relationship between the labour movement and working-class leisure during the interwar years, this article considers the interactions of the co-operative moment with popular discourses on recreation in Britain from the 1950s to the 1970s. In so doing, it challenges assumptions about the Left's disconnection from sporting culture. The Co-op used sport to create a collective co-operative identity amongst its employees. Examining the social and political context of these activities in post-war Britain can inform debates on the construction of female identity through sport, the use of recreation for business advantage and the extent to which the co-operative movement shaped working-class leisure patterns. Although the article highlights that co-op sport formed a source of tension between the retail and wholesale sections of the movement and could be adversely affected by popular affluence, it argues that a reappraisal of the co-operative movement's recreational activities contributes to a broader understanding of post-war working-class culture.
Affordable housing has been a critical issue in urban affairs since global economy restructured localities. Non-profit or not-for-profit groups emerging in a new local era have been heavily involved in the production of affordable housing. Known as a common form of affordable housing, cooperative housing, especially limited-equity co-op housing (LECH), is community-oriented, neighborhood-based, and demand-side housing initiated at grass roots level. Little research on co-op housing for senior citizens has been made. This study is qualitative research that was designed to examine the mechanism of LECH for senior citizens in urban areas, and to develop the tenets of the LECH living perceived by the residents. A series of qualitative research techniques such as site visits, in-depth interviewing and focus group discussions were employed in four LECH, and semi-structured interview questionnaire was used to meet the research goals of the study. The results of this field research indicated that LECH ensured both short- and long-term affordability and enabled seniors to independently live. Four pairs of tenets were developed in relation to the architecture of LECH living for urban seniors: 1) homeownership and affordability: 2) participation and a sense of community: 3) control over residential environment and democratic governance; and 4) residential satisfaction and environmental support for independent living.
As opposed to political democracy and its attempts at power control in the public sector, the concentration of economic power, and its antidote, the concept of economic democracy, has received much less attention. In the paper, we first offer a definition of economic democracy as a “a system of checks and balances on economic power and support for the right of citizens to actively participate in the economy regardless of social status, race, gender, etc.” Based on our definition, we suggest six possible faces of economic democracy and look at their implications for the vision of a sustainable, equitable and non-growing society, as discussed within the degrowth movement: 1. Regulation of market mechanisms and corporate activities. Regulation is one of the most obvious paths to curbing economic power, hence we highlight the issue of deregulation vis a vis possible degrowth policies. A revision of the free-market paradigm is suggested. 2. Support for social enterprises. We discuss different forms of democratic governance within enterprises and suggest that co-operative approaches, common in social enterprises, are better suited to a degrowth economy. 3. Democratic money creation processes, including pluralist community currencies, are suggested to counter economic power caused by the practice of fractional banking. 4. Reclaiming the commons (especially in their original sense as communal land stewardship systems) both conceptually and physically is seen by us as an important aspect of enhancing economic democracy. 5. Redistribution of income and capital assets is discussed as another approach to achieving economic democracy. 6. Finally, inspired by Vandana Shiva, we suggest that a broader view of economic democracy would involve a diversity of production scales and modes, including small-scale, subsistence and self- employment.
This paper asks how effective are co-operatives at surviving economic recession, and whether they can grow at the expense of investor-owned businesses and provide an alternative business model that is fairer, more stable and less risky. The paper begins by providing historical evidence concerning the resilience of co-operatives during economic crises. Then, taking a ‘member-owned business’ approach, it analyses the comparative advantages and disadvantages of co-ops along three dimensions: ownership, control and benefit. It broadens this out to consider advantages to the wider society, and theorises comparative advantages of other business types. It concludes by asking what it would take for the co-operative potential to be realized.
The United Nations has declared 2012 to be the International Year of Co-operatives in recognition of the impact that co-operative enterprise has on more than three billion people across the globe. Co-operatives contribute to national and local economies in virtually every country by championing an ethical approach to business underpinned by internationally agreed values and principles. Yet despite the wide-ranging successes of co-operatives, in financial terms as well as in the development of sustainable communities, the study of these democratic forms of enterprise remains surprisingly absent from the curricula of most university business schools around the world.Designed primarily for undergraduate students, Democratic Enterprise provides an introductory-level analysis of democratic models of enterprise, namely co-operatives and employee-owned businesses. A supplement to any course that deals with these topics, it also stands alone as a template for academics who wish to incorporate material on democratic models of enterprise into courses relating to economics, business studies, sustainable development, enterprise, and organizational theory and behavior.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to present the existing forms of collective action in the Greek agrifood sector and to focus on co‐operatives, the dominant form of collective action in the agrifood sector of the North Aegean region.
Design/methodology/approach
– The analysis is based on six contextual and behavioural conditions under which collective action may emerge.
Findings
– This paper shows that very successful co‐operatives, according to the six contextual and behavioural conditions, co‐exist with unsuccessful ones, which are characterised by inflexibilities and inability to respond to a constantly changing market. Moreover, the legal status of some co‐operatives (obligatory co‐operatives) is of great interest.
Originality/value
– This paper attempts to categorise existing forms of collective action in the Greek agrifood sector. Moreover, it gives information about the co‐operatives of the North Aegean region, based on three research programmes that were conducted in the region.
Observes that there has been a renewal of interest in the co-operative form of business in the UK as a method of working in times of rapid economic change. Notes that co-operative development agencies, which were established in the 1980s as a means of assisting co-operative growth and structure, have not always enjoyed a successful relationship with their clients and as a result have been declining in number and influence. Investigates why this relationship did not develop effectively and discusses the development of alternative support structures being established by the co-operatives themselves. Suggests that these new opportunities present new problems but that the vitality of worker co-operatives helps overcome these problems.
ABSTRACT†: Members' transaction costs decrease as a consequence of cooperative principles and cooperative values. The members' cooperative values reduce their uncertainty in relation to each other and in their relationship to the business environment. Thus, there are two categories of values: social values and sovereignty values. The cooperative principles are characteristics of the cooperative organization that aim to reduce transaction costs in the members' relationships with the cooperative. Thus we find two types of principles: business principles and society principles. Business principles state how relationships between the cooperative enterprise and the members should be designed. Society principles reduce transaction costs for members in their interactions.
Food policy is high on the public policy agenda, but still suffers from a lack of overview and integration. The paper reviews examples of policy limitations where tighter and more explicit links could usefully be made between environmental, social and public health considerations. The paper proposes a new ecological health approach to public policy. This offers marked advantages over the present “productionist” approach to food policy. With this old policy regime in crisis, the paper reviews current moves towards adoption of the ecological health model in Britain, Europe and globally.
This article argues that students of retail history need to give more attention to the idea of the retail format. Employing a conceptualisation of the format recently presented in contemporary retail studies, it reveals the importance of so-called 'offering' and 'know-how' components to a fuller understanding of the development of the supermarket format in post-war Britain. Supermarket development is shown to be affected by, and itself impact on, a complex interplay of factors. Arguments presented in the article are supported by a detailed examination of supermarket development at the London Co-operative Society between 1960 and 1965. The paper thus also contributes to our knowledge of the history of co-operative retailing in the post-war period.
In the last twenty years Greece has witnessed the emergence and establishment of women’s cooperatives, a form of productive agricultural cooperatives. This paper explores their importance and their contribution to local development. Evidence is presented for an island region, the North Aegean. Personal interviews, using structured questionnaires, were conducted with the chairwomen of all the region’s cooperatives in order to obtain an insight into their structure and dynamics. According to the findings of this study, women’s cooperatives are characterized by substantial potential on the one hand and by serious drawbacks on the other. The economic performance of the cooperatives is satisfactory, while the use of local resources and ‘know how’ contribute to the development of the region. Interpersonal problems, the inability of the cooperatives’ members to fully understand their new role as businesswomen and the small participation of rural women are the cooperatives’ major problems. The future of the women’s cooperatives is still unclear despite their 20 years of existence.
In this paper we examine shoppers' reactions to the development of early supermarket retailing in post-war Britain. Positioning our discussion in relation to multi-disciplinary contributions on the role of consumers in innovation, we argue that more attention needs to be given to the shopper's input in the debate on retail innovation, including the supermarket. New oral history data drawn from a nationwide survey is presented in support of our arguments. Shoppers' contributions to the supermarket innovation are shown to be multi-faceted in nature, incorporating processes of co-production and value creation; processes that were altered in the transition from counter-service to self-service retail environments. Shoppers' discussions of such alterations were frequently structured around four aspects of interaction; with the physical environment of the store, with the goods for sale, with other shoppers and with shop staff. Whilst increasingly part of ‘ordinary consumption’ routines, the data highlights that in the switch to the supermarket, shopping became a more reflective activity and one that resulted in a variety of experiences and emotions.
The role of law in the governance of the relationship between food and public health is being altered by the changed structures and dynamics of modern food systems. A series of crises in food and health in the 1980s and 1990s shook up public health law throughout the world, providing a much needed modernization push, mostly over food safety. 1 Nevertheless, such is the pace and scale of change in the food supply chain — a near permanent state of change — that public health is being stretched by a new set of dynamics in which perfectly legal actions by food marketers (productdevelopers, technologists and the food businesses pursuing market share) have a sometimes unwitting impact on public health. The food system’s modern dynamics — overproduction, brand-led marketing, highly processed value-added foods, and more— have contributed to the emergence of the current profile of diet-related ill-health, dominated by noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). 2,3
Workers in many countries receive part of their wages in kind. The International Labor Organization criticizes this practice
by citing the “exploitative” truck system in industrializing Britain, which paid wage advances in cash and company store goods.
This article finds that truck did not reduce British wages by as much as is believed, and that employers' ability to earn
rents from hiring was limited. Company store premiums are interpreted as the cost of employer credit, and workers benefited
from truck because most of the time independent credit cost at least as much. Firms earned rents from riskless loans to employees
and avoided holdup by independent outlets at minimal transaction costs. The British truck system was mutually beneficial,
and the evidence does not support the call to abolish similar practices today.
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