ABSTRACT
The co-operative way of organizing business has had a remarkable and lasting impact on societies and economies. Increasingly, co-operatives are also becoming “makers of global business” even though they are faced with particular challenges as they globalize. In this chapter we argue that co-operatives deal with the dilemma of holding on to supposedly universal and timeless principles, while at the same time being forced to react to dramatically changing contexts both nationally and internationally. Based on the case studies of two co-operatives in Denmark, where the business system has aptly been termed “co-operative liberalism,” we explore how co-operatives have supported the narrative of a democratic version of capitalism, securing economic growth without simultaneously creating social tensions.
