Not only do cooperatives have a better chance of surviving a crisis, but are also created during a crisis

Cooperatives more immune to the negative effects of an economic crisis

Around 250 million people around the world are employed in cooperatives. The figure in Europe is around 16 million. Foto: Reuters

Although Slovenia has a long history of cooperatives, we have come to realize the true meaning of cooperatives in the last decade, perhaps thanks to the economic crisis during which Slovenia's cooperatives fared much better than other companies.

Around 250 million people around the world are employed in cooperatives. The figure in Europe is around 16 million. According to the Agency of the Republic of Slovenia for Public Legal Records and Related Services (AJPES) the number of cooperatives in Slovenia is on the rise. At the end of 2015 there were 387 registered cooperatives. Slovenia's cooperatives are actively involved in all of the country's economic sectors, but mostly in retail services. The most developed cooperatives work in the fields of agriculture and forestry. According to the Cooperative Union of Slovenia, this is so because of historical reasons and tradition.

Slovenia is one of the oldest cooperative countries in the world, as this year it marks its 145th anniversary of cooperativism. "The beginnings of Slovene cooperativism go back to the second half of the 19th century, with the creation of the first cheese companies in the Tolmin and Bohinj areas. The first loan cooperative was established in 1872 in Ljutomer. Later in 1883, on the initiative of Mihael Vošnjak, the Union of Slovene Loan Banks came to life in Celje," explains the Cooperative Union of Slovenia, which voluntarily brings together 62 agricultural and forestry cooperatives, from the overall total of 85 registered cooperatives active in the fields of agriculture, forestry, hunting and fishing.
The cooperatives, which are members of the Cooperative Union of Slovenia, generate annual earnings amounting to more than 630 million euros, which represents 83 percent of all the cooperative income in Slovenia. The Cooperative Union of Slovenia emphasizes that the cooperatives, which are also owners of around 350 stores across the country, are an important link in the food supply chain – farmer → cooperative → food processor → retailer → consumer. In the countryside cooperatives often ensure some of the basic services. "In some places they perform contractual postal services, and such units sometimes even serve as bank offices. As part of their activities a number of cooperatives also offer accounting services, putting together business plans, and organizing cultural and artistic events," the cooperative union listed some of the activities.
What makes a cooperative different from other companies?
"A cooperative is a form of company in which its members join voluntarily in order to become stronger, more successful, and more competitive," explained the head of the department for promotion and public relations at the Cooperative Union of Slovenia, Anita Jakuš.

Sabina Janičijević, MMC; translated by K. J.