Saturday 5 July 2025 is the International Day of Co-operatives and in the UN’s International Year of Co-operatives, we should all take the time to celebrate the economic, social and community benefits co-operatives bring to our society. Although sometimes overshadowed by the company model, the co-operative is a robust business structure with the added bonus of being a people-centred enterprise with an embedded values-based approach.
Co-operatives are owned and run by their members for the benefit of those members. All co-operatives adhere to seven international principles (available here), which include democratic member control and a focus on sustainable development of the community.
While delivering a more sustainable society with economic and social outcomes for members and the greater community, co-operatives are also big business.
The Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutuals (BCCM) recently released their National Mutual Economy Report (available here) on the co-operative and mutual (CME) sector across Australia. CMEs have shown continued resilience against a backdrop of global volatility, with the top 100 CMEs posting gross revenue of $47.7 billion in the 2023-2024 financial year, up from $44 billion in the previous year. There are more than 1,834 active CMEs in Australia, with 37.3 million combined active memberships.
As a business structure, co-operatives deliver many of the benefits of a company and they act as a separate legal entity which protects members from liability. However, because they are run by members, the people directly engaged in the business of the co-operative make the decisions which gives members of a co-operative a much greater level of control, without the intervention of an external board. Co-operatives focus on delivering benefits to their members and the community rather than strictly delivering profit for shareholders. This means co-operatives can deliver members better returns or to reinvest the proceeds in improving their products or services and lowering costs. The co-operative is a recognised Australian legal structure to consider when choosing a model for your business.
Co-operatives have a long history in banking, superannuation, retailing and agriculture and are increasingly adopted in the social care sector to provide sustainable aged and disability care and housing services.
The Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care and the BCCM recently delivered the national “Care Together Program” which supported the establishment of innovative models of social care delivery (including aged care, disability care, veterans’ care, indigenous services, allied health and primary care) in thin markets. This program resulted in multiple new co-operatives around Australia being formed and allowing a number of existing CMEs the ability to scale their offerings. Empowering employees, providers and participants to control the way in which care is delivered and in a sustainable manner, is just one way that co-operatives build a better world. We were a proud partner of the Care Together Program.
Co-operatives have proven social benefits, but they are first and foremost an effective business operating structure.
If you are interested in learning more about the benefits of a co-operative structure for your business, please contact Katie Innes at BAL Lawyers. For more information on co-operatives or the International Day of Co-operatives contact the BCCM at http://bccm.coop/ or the International Co-operative Alliance at https://ica.coop/en/2025-international-year-cooperatives.