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This paper aims at answering the questions when and how do cooperatives compete in the globalised world? With the goal to answer these questions, a qualitative study was conducted based on a sample of 9 consumer and producer farmer cooperatives operating in Sao Miguel. Sao Miguel is an Azorean island, which main economic activity relies on the agriculture market, where cooperatives compete in the national and international markets. The results point that Azores presents specific characteristics in terms of geography, market size, market characteristics and members characteristics that helps to understand why the cooperative model is a viable organisational form in this market. The second part of the results clarifies how these cooperatives are able to compete in the international arena. Their strategies encompass offering the best service or the best product; competing through cooperative networks. They also present professional management and operate under small margins, aiming at maximising benefit instead of profits. This paper sheds light to the role of cooperatives in local and global economies, and also questions whether cooperatives are inefficient/efficient organisations and under which conditions.

Досліджено підходи до розгляду складу економічного потенціалу загалом і на основі цього – торговельного підприємства. Розгляд складу економічного потенціалу торговельного підприємства проведено шляхом вивчення існуючих підходів до структурування потенціалу підприємства. На основі цього визначено, що склад економічного потенціалу підприємств торгівлі споживчої кооперації доцільно розглядати через ресурсний та функціональний підходи із взаємним узгодженням виділених складових. Результати дослідження є основою для формування теоретичних засад та практичних напрямів управління економічним потенціалом торговельного підприємства. При цитуванні документа, використовуйте посилання http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/36001 Исследованы подходы к рассмотрению состава экономического потенциала в целом и на основе этого – предприятия. Рассмотрение состава экономического потенциала торгового предприятия проведен путем изучения существующих подходов к структурированию потенциала предприятия . На основе этого определено, что состав экономического потенциала предприятий торговли потребительской кооперации целесообразно рассматривать через ресурсный и функциональный подходы с взаимному согласованию выделенных составляющих. Результаты исследования являются основой для формирования теоретических основ и практических направлений управления экономическим потенциалом предприятия. При цитировании документа, используйте ссылку http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/36001 The aim of the article. Achieving steady state economic system, which is the Consumer Cooperatives in Ukraine , and its effective operation, requires the solution of complex tasks to ensure competitiveness. The most important of these challenges need to be maximize the potential of the use of trade by managing resources, opportunities and means of commercial enterprise in the market conditions. In this regard, it is necessary to make scientific approach of the economic potential of trade consumer cooperatives , both theoretical soil to implement management. The composition and structure of the potential of the enterprise as a whole of economic potential, particularly in the context of its nature, value management features considered in the works of many domestic and foreign scholars. However, a common approach to structuring potential of the company in general, and economic potential of trade, particularly in science does not exist. Therefore, a detailed study of the nature and composition of the needs of the economic potential of commercial enterprises of consumer cooperation as an important direction of management to ensure efficiency, competitiveness and enterprise development. The aim of the paper study the composition of the «economic potential of commercial enterprise» as the basis for the theoretical foundations and practical areas of management and economic potential of trade consumer cooperatives. The results of the analysis. As a result of studies of the economic potential of trade consumer cooperatives conducted a thorough analysis of existing approaches to structuring potential: selection of a component with its own list of the main characteristics of the species , resources , functional, two-level and modular. The essence of each of these approaches, its developers and researchers , advantages and disadvantages. As a result, a critical consideration in the economic potential of trade consumer cooperatives based on these approaches determined that it reflects the selection of the economic component of the overall capacity of the trading company in the middle of which a defined structure and its characteristics. It is determined that economic potential of the consumer cooperatives trade advisable to structure, especially in terms of resource approach , choosing material, labor, financial and intangible components. In the modern interpretation of the structure of the economic potential for resource approach, composition of the economic potential of commercial enterprise consumer cooperation in contemporary conditions should be considered as a set of resources of the enterprise and the ability to use them to achieve a certain goal. In terms of the functional approach, the economic potential of the trade of consumer cooperatives as a set of production, marketing, financial and management components. Since trading company has certain capabilities ( resources) perform to their functions, resources and functional structuring of the economic potential of commercial enterprise are consumer cooperatives turns to interrelated. Conclusions and directions of further researches. The results of the study are the basis for the development of management and economic potential of commercial enterprise and consumer cooperatives to determine its competitiveness. When you are citing the document, use the following link http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/36001

The main aim of this paper is to study the propensity of consumer cooperatives (Coops) to use incentive schemes in situations of strategic interaction with profit-maximizing firms (PMFs). Our model provides a reason why Coops are less prone than PMFs to pay variable bonuses to their managers. We show that this occurs under price competition when in equilibrium the Coop prefers to pay a flat wage to its manager relying instead on her intrinsic motivation, whereas the profit-maximizing rival adopts a variable, high-powered incentive scheme. The main rationale is that, by recruiting a manager whose preferences are aligned with the company goals (e.g., a consumer-owner), the Coop is per se highly expansionary in term of output. Therefore, the Coop does not need to rely on an externally hired manager who sets prices aggressively to expand market share and quantity. Furthermore, adopting a monetary reward based on sales and profits leads to distorted incentives with respect to the Coop’s goal, which after all is the welfare of its members.

The recent globalization of world economies has led the retail markets of developed countries towards increasing levels of integration and strategic interdependence. A non negligible share of retail and food markets is currently served by co-operative societies. Consistently with this trend, the consumer cooperatives have recently experienced increasing levels of integration. The main aim of this paper is to study the welfare effects of coordination among consumer cooperatives competing in quantities in a mixed oligopoly against profit-maximizing firms. We show that, in absence of agency problems, whereas under increasing or constant returns to scale a higher output coordination of consumer cooperatives may not affect the total welfare as long as a nonnegative profit constraint holds, under decreasing returns to scale the consumer cooperatives may contribute more to social welfare when acting on behalf of all consumers. This is because, by coordinating consumers' preferences, these firms can reduce their market output, thus helping the market to come closer to the first best. All together these results seem to provide an argument in favor of the recent process of integration involving consumer cooperatives in many developed countries.

Consumer cooperatives represent a highly successful example of democratic form of enterprises operating in developed countries. They are usually medium to large-scale companies competing with the profit-maximizing firms in the retail sector. This paper describes this situation as a mixed oligopoly in which consumer cooperatives maximize the utility of consumer-members and, in return, refund them with a share of the profits corresponding to the ratio of their individual spending to the cooperative’s total sales. We show that when consumers possess quasi-linear preferences over a bundle of symmetrically differentiated goods, and companies operate using a linear technology, the presence of consumer cooperatives positively affects total industry output, as well as welfare. The effect of cooperatives on welfare proves to be even more significant when goods are either complements or highly differentiated, and when competition is a la Cournot rather than a la Bertrand.