The cooperative
movement
The cooperative movement began in Europe, mainly in Great Britain and France. Among the pioneers of this model was the Shore Porters Society cooperative: a moving, transport, and storage company established by a group of port workers in Aberdeen, Scotland, on June 22, 1498.
With the Industrial Revolution and the persistent labor movements that took center stage in the following decades, many workers began to feel that their sustainability was threatened and decided to join together, to show solidarity with each other. In this context, 1769 in Fenwick, East Ayrshire, United Kingdom, the first documented consumer cooperative was born. Its origin goes back to the Weavers' Society when its members began to market a large sack of oats at a significant discount in a small cottage
Over the years, the cooperative movement was consolidated and by 1830 there were hundreds of cooperatives, many of which are still thriving today.
Due to its rise and constant growth, in 1844 the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers established the "Rochdale Principles" , an elementary base that was updated until it reached those that currently regulate the development and growth of the modern cooperative movement.