The Food Co‐op Potential

Marion, Donald R.; Aklilu, Bisrat

doi:10.1111/j.1745-6606.1975.tb00548.x

Cited by 8 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…One prevalent form of collective action is co‐operatives, in which co‐op members purchase and sell through coalitions. Instead of waiting for a corporation or government to respond to their needs, co‐op participants collectively bargain on their own behalf (Marion and Aklilu 1975). Similar to co‐ops, TP is a grassroots phenomenon in response to inadequate market situations.…”

Section: Consumer Empowermentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Team Purchase: A Case of Consumer Empowerment in China

Wang¹,

Zhao²,

Li³

2011

Journal of Consumer Affairs

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This research examines the phenomenon of team purchasing, a collective action initiated and organized by consumers. Chinese consumers use team purchase to counteract the imbalance of information and power that exists in China's consumer market. Through in‐depth interviews with 30 team buyers, we find that they engage in collective information search and product evaluation, jointly uncover market fraud, seek to avoid deceptive practices and price manipulation and actively defend their rights as consumers. Their collective efforts empower them in an opaque market with inadequate government regulation. This research sheds light on this innovative, bottom‐up approach to protecting consumer interests.

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Section: Consumer Empowermentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Team Purchase: A Case of Consumer Empowerment in China

Wang¹,

Zhao²,

Li³

2011

Journal of Consumer Affairs

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“…By not competing head to head in the general food retailing market but catering to a specific niche, they are able to survive. It is generally acknowledged that cooperatives are inefficient, lack economies of scale and often lack adequate managerial skills (Marion and Aklilu, 1975). The profit motive does not drive cooperatives to maintain efficiency and low prices.…”

Section: The Cooperativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Food Retailing Structure of the Northwest Territories

Green¹,

Green²

1987

ARCTIC

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Food retailers in the Northwest Territories face dramatically different conditions from those of southern food retailers. There are three main differences: (1) small market size, (2) limited geographical access to suppliers and (3) different types of competitors. These differences have resulted in higher food prices and smaller, more general, stores with a wider variety of merchandise than southern supermarkets. Resupply is much less frequent than in southern supermarkets because resupply must be made via either air or barge shipment rather than truck delivery. The N.W.T. food retailing structure comprises three types of food retailers: the independently operated stores, the cooperatives and chain stores. This first examination of the similarities and differences between the store types is drawn from a mail survey of all the food retailers in the N.W.T. The food retailers have adapted to the small, isolated northern markets by expanding their merchandise line well beyond food products. The Hudson's Bay Company stores carry the widest variety of merchandise, while the others carry a more limited product line. Inventory management varies among the store types. The cooperatives generally fail to use the cheaper alternative transportation modes (road or water) where possible. This is not due to location but may reflect poor managerial skills or simply a lack of profit motivation.

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Declining Competition in Food Retailing: An Opportunity for Consumer Food Cooperatives?

Cotterill

1978

Journal of Consumer Affairs

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Food cooperatives have become more popular among consumers during the past decade. Although consumers can organize cooperatives for several reasons, economic factors may be more Important than indicated by previous research. Specifically, the recent growth in consumer food cooperatives may be pssociated with declining competition In local food markets. This article reports recent research results on market structure and performance by SMSA that address this hypothesis.A recent nationwide survey by the Agricultural Council of America reports that 85 percent of consumers feel food costs are too high, while 50 percent are unhappy with the quality and nutritional value of food [ 14, p. 11. Another survey commissioned by the Food Marketing Institute suggests that 33 percent of consumers are "ready to engage in direct consumer action" to improve the performance of 'the food system [9, p. 161. Some dissatisfied consumers have, in fact, taken direct action: they have organized food cooperatives. The 1977 edition of the Food Co-op Directory [5] reports the names and addresses of over 2,300 establishments.Many economists have concluded that non-economic factors are fueling the growth of food cooperatives citing the inability of small retail stores to profit from economies of size. Marion and Aklilu, for example, write:Since most co-ops have been somewhat less operationally efficient than other retail establishments, the question would appear to be that of the extent to which the spirit and philosophy of cooperative enterprise are accepted by consumers in society at large. This Ronald W. as well as the author were members of the =search group.'In the divisional profit models, independent variables for the SMSAs comprising each division were weighted by the proportion of the division's sales in the SMSA and summed to obtain comparable data series. Space precludes a more complete discussion of model specification and presentation of empirical results. Please see I121 for further information. That research report is being published by Praeger Inc. in its special studies series.

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The Food Co‐op Potential

Cited by 8 publications

References 1 publication

Team Purchase: A Case of Consumer Empowerment in China

Team Purchase: A Case of Consumer Empowerment in China

The Food Retailing Structure of the Northwest Territories

Declining Competition in Food Retailing: An Opportunity for Consumer Food Cooperatives?

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