THE ROCHDALE PIONEERS
The First Co-op
In 1844, the Rochdale Co-op opened its
doors. It still exists today. Modern day
Co-ops still maintain the standards, a.k.a. Co-operative
Principles, established by Rochdale. The above
photo is of the original site of the Rochdale
Co-operative. Today it houses the Rochdale Pioneers
Memorial Museum.
The Origins of the Movement
The Consumer Co-operative Movement has its roots in the
economic and political circumstances of the early part of
the nineteenth century. The industrial revolution in
reshaping the nature of society created many problems and
challenges.
The development of political ideas and movements in this
period, particularly associated with Robert Owen, gave ordinary people the encouragement
and opportunity to organise aspects of their lives. This
development, although now primarily equated with the Chartists, was about more than just
demanding the vote; the objective was very much about
changing the world not in dreams but in practical
realities.
One real practical reality was the difficulty many
ordinary families experienced in obtaining food of
acceptable quality at fair prices. The development of
shops did not keep pace with the growth of the new
industrial communities, and unscrupulous shopkeepers
maintained a monopoly of trade in their localities.
So the need and ability to organise, together with the
social needs and self-help values of the Victorian age,
became combined in the co-operative movement which was to
revolutionise retailing during the century ahead.
History of the Co-operative Movement
Many people imagine that the Co-operative Movement is a
single national organisation - this is far from reality.
The Movement is in fact made up of many separate and
independent societies united in their common belief in
certain values and principles with the shared aim of
serving their members.
The Co-operative Movement has its roots in the 19th
Century when the industrial revolution resulted in
widespread exploitation and misery for many working
people. One particular form of exploitation that was
common was the way many people found it difficult to
obtain good quality food at a fair price.
The development of political movements such as the
Chartists, gave ordinary people suffering similar
injustices the opportunity and the ability to organise
aspects of their lives. This, coupled with the
increasingly popular ideas of social reformers such as Robert Owen and Dr. William King, led people to realise that they
could achieve far more by acting collectively than they
ever would do working separately.
They formed trade unions to overcome exploitation at work
and improve their terms and conditions of employment and
set up their own shops to avoid exploitation as
consumers.
The Rochdale Pioneers are credited with starting the
first successful retail co-operative society in 1844,
although there had been earlier attempts. The Pioneers
opened a shop in Toad Lane, Rochdale selling
unadulterated goods at reasonable prices. They also
introduced a dividend that meant that all of its
customers became members of the Society and received a
return in accordance with their expenditure.
By 1890, the efforts of ordinary men and women had forged
a Movement of some 1,400 society’s right across the
length and breadth of the country, with even more in
Europe and elsewhere throughout the world. However,
during the last century, the Co-operative Movement has
undergone many changes in order to meet the challenge
posed by multiple retailers, including combining to
create larger and more efficient organisations. Today,
there are around 47 retail co- operative societies in the
UK ranging in size from small 'one shop' societies to
giants with sales of over £5 billion.
The Movement still retains its original principles by
being owned and democratically controlled by its members.
It still uses its profits for the mutual and individual
benefit of members and seeks to give its customers a fair
deal. Societies also continue to provide a wide range of
educational, social and cultural activities and are
widely involved in the communities they serve.
The Rochdale Pioneers
The first successful retail co-operative of the modern
type was established in Toad Lane, Rochdale. Twenty eight
people from the town, who became known as the
‘Rochdale Pioneer’ opened the first shop in
1844.
The concept of ‘members’ - the shops customers
– receiving a dividend, or return, in direct
proportion to their expenditure in the shop, proved to be
a popular one. More shops opened and many more
co-operative societies were established until by 1900
there were over 1400 independent retail societies. As
more Societies were formed, a federal body was formed,
known as the Co-operative Union. This provided a link
between societies and provided specialist legal,
financial, political and educational services to
societies in membership.
Expansion - Extending Activities
One of the main difficulties faced by those early
co-operative societies was to procure goods to sell in
their shops. Individually, they had neither the skill nor
the buying power to get the best deal for their members.
In 1863, a group of societies formed the Co-operative
Wholesale Society. The CWS eventually extended its
activities beyond wholesaling into manufacturing,
farming, importing and the provision of services which
local societies could not undertake individually.
The CWS subsequently became directly involved in
retailing and is now the largest retail society in the
UK. The Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) and The
Co-operative Bank are just two offshoots of CWS.
The Co-op Today
Today there are around 46 Co-operative societies ranging
from small one-shop societies to large national
societies. In total they account for over £1.5 billion
of turnover. The consumer co-operative movement is just a
small part of an international co-operative movement
which straddles over 100 countries and has over 700
million members.
source
http://www.united.coop/MembOrigins.asp
The International Co-operative Alliance
http://www.ica.coop/
c/o 26
Lockingwell Road, Keynsham, Bristol, BS31 2HG
|
|
