Retailers' cooperative

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Marketing cooperative links here; see also Agricultural marketing cooperative

A retailers' cooperative is a type of cooperative which employs economies of scale on behalf of its retailer members. Retailers' cooperatives use their purchasing power to acquire discounts from manufacturers and often share marketing expenses. It is common for locally owned grocery stores, hardware stores and pharmacies to participate in retailers' cooperatives. Consumers' cooperatives, sometimes referred to as retail cooperatives, should be distinguished from retailers' cooperatives.

[edit] Examples

Types of
cooperatives

By governance

Consumers' cooperative	Cooperative federation · Cooperative wholesale society

Worker cooperative	Employee ownership · Workers' self-management · Workers' control · Workplace democracy · Business and employment co-operative

Purchasing cooperative	Retailers' cooperative

By purpose

Cooperative banking	Credit union · Mutual savings bank · Savings and loan association · Building society

Housing cooperative	Building cooperative · Student housing cooperative · Housing society · (Egalitarian) · Intentional community

Agricultural cooperative	Collective farming · Winemaking cooperative · Wheat pool

Utility cooperative	Community wind energy

Mutual education	Anarchistic free school · Homeschool cooperative · Democratic education · Learning by teaching

Mutual insurance	Health insurance cooperative