What is a Co-op?
The International Co-operative Alliance defines a cooperative as “an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise.” The Cooperative Grocer Magazine puts this definition in simpler terms by stating that a co-op is “a business 1) voluntarily owned by the people who use it, and 2) operated for the benefit of its members. Regardless of the goods and services provided, co-ops aim to meet their members needs.”
There are a vast variety of cooperatives. Housing, building, financial, social, retail, employment, agricultural, and many, many more. There are cooperatives made up of cooperatives—cooperative federations! So, to say the least, it is a big movement that encompasses many more organizations and peoples than you might have thought. All cooperatives possess the same goals, elements and values. As stated by the Cooperative Grocer, the “overall goal of the cooperative movement is to create organizations that serve the needs of the people who use them. Cooperative businesses provide goods and services in a way that keeps community resources in the community.”
Consumer Cooperatives Like Swarthmore
The Swarthmore cooperative is considered a consumer’s cooperative. What is a consumer’s co-op? A consumer’s co-op is a cooperative business (founded on the above principles and values) owned by its customer for their mutual benefit that emphasizes and strives for service over profit. Quality goods and low-cost go hand and hand with a consumer co-op. Prices are kept competitive with other markets and any profits made by the co-op are given back to the members, or used to improve the co-op as per the board’s decision. As opposed to investors or financial backers who usually make exorbitant amounts in the retail market, co-ops cycle their monetary success right back into the community from which it came.
Genuine cooperatives contain the following elements:
• Co-ops are owned and governed by their primary users (the member-owners).
• Co-ops are democratically governed (one-member, one-vote).
• Co-ops are businesses, not clubs or associations.
• Co-ops adhere to internationally recognized principles.
More about cooperatives ...
The universal values all cooperatives operate under
The Rochdale Principles: The principles laid out by the first coop in 1844
