Submitted 3 weeks ago by null_dot@lemmy.dbzer0.com to australia@aussie.zone
Most small rural towns in Western Australia have a Co-op store.
I’m a bit sketchy on the details but my understanding is that they’re not-for-profit’s, they charge a mark up on the things they sell, but really just enough to pay wages for employees. Any left over money is distributed to the people who buy things.
Why do these only exist in small towns and why aren’t they a thing in larger towns and cities?
It would be amazing to only pay cost plus wages for your groceries.
Western Canadian cities (pops of about 1mil) still have co-ops.
Not really an answer, just another data point for you.
In the US, I see co-ops in big cities more often than anywhere else.
Yeah right. Good to know.
Do they sell comparable things to a supermarket? Or is it more like hardware ? How does pricing compare to for-profit shops?
The ones I’ve seen are more like a supermarket, and prices are generally higher than at for-profit stores.
At least six food co-ops in Sydney appear to have died since 2018, which I suspect is partly due to COVID.
“Economics” is the answer in one way. And in another since large companies lobby for laws that help them and hurt progress.
“Economics” isn’t a useful answer.
www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-10/…/104078660
sounds like most people are ok with paying more so they don’t have to do that stuff
i know that a lot of people complain about woolies and coles but a significantly larger amount of people use them without issue
Not Australia, but Mountain Equipment Co-op in Canada is pretty huge. I don’t think it’s a flaw of the model that it’s not taken up more widely, more just a lack of will.
Friends of the Earth on Smith Street Collingwood, Melbourne. Has been there for ages. It’s a co-op.
princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 weeks ago
If I had to guess, part of it would be that many staple groceries are actually sold below cost by the majors as loss leaders to get people in the doors. They can also force suppliers, with their larger buying power, to sell them things for cheaper. A good example of all this is milk.
Phen@lemmy.eco.br 2 weeks ago
Not necessarily selling below cost. They can save money in all sorts of ways:
null_dot@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 weeks ago
These are all really good examples of what large grocers can do to maximise profits, but it doesn’t really answer my question.
A large not-for-profit could leverage most of these advantages. Multiple stores in multiple cities certainly could.
IGA stores are all independently owned but have a combined distribution network.
They wouldn’t have to achieve the same volume that colesworth does because… they don’t need any profit.