Introduction

This chapter illustrates a brief history and current status of Korean consumer cooperatives. Happycoop consumer cooperatives was established in 1989 with the aim to enhance gender equality and women’s rights in the practice of a consumer cooperative movement organized by Women’s Link. In 2002, Hansalim Seoul reconstructed its organization by separating local groups, registering a corporation, establishing ‘Moshim and Salim Research Institute’, and organizing Hansalim Business Association around the metropolitan area. Consumers in urban areas also organized a cooperative, ‘Hansalim community consumer’s cooperative’. The challenges of cooperatives, specifically business-related themes such as governance, finance, performance, organization, marketing, and supply chain, are discussed in terms of business and social movement. Besides, in 2010, based on the revised Consumer Cooperatives Act, they established the iCOOP business union of consumer cooperatives and iCOOP consumer activities, which consist of primary cooperatives to focus on their own fields of interest. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.