Journal of Co-operative Studies, 56(2), 35-40
Consumer co-operation around the world: ‘Strategic renewal’ since 1980?
| Open access |  | Editorial review/ short paper | Published online: June 2023 |
Consumer co-operation around the world: ‘Strategic renewal’ since 1980?
John F. Wilson, Samuli Skurnik, Espen Ekberg, and Anthony Webster
Vol 56 No 2, pp. 35-40
https://doi.org/10.61869/IAHN8776
How to cite this article: Wilson, J.F., Skurnik, S., Ekberg, E., & Webster, A. (2023). Consumer co-operation around the world: ‘Strategic renewal’ since 1980? Journal of Co-operative Studies, 56(2), 35-40. https://doi.org/10.61869/IAHN8776
Abstract
This short article reports on an international project that investigates Strategic Renewal in consumer co-operatives. Strategic Renewal refers to the ways an organisation attempts to change itself radically and rapidly, usually in response to an external crisis. The project explores how consumer co-operatives around the world have adapted to changes in the business environment over the last forty years and investigates whether those changes can be described as Strategic Renewal. A book based on the project published by Routledge (in press) includes case studies from consumer co‑operatives in the UK, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Italy, France, Canada, Australia, South Korea, and Japan. The academic findings suggest that iterative, piecemeal, adaptive change is more appropriate for co-operatives than completely overhauling the business, leading the authors to conclude that co‑operative Strategic Renewal is a slower and messier process than the literature suggests. In practical terms, awareness of initiatives in other countries can help consumer co-operatives to investigate initiatives which might be adapted to local conditions.
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