But markets change, and so do the services and the “background to the products being offered”, says Greaves. “So it’s not, I think, correct to say that one must maintain a co-operative structure in perpetuity. And I think we’re seeing some of that debate now playing out here.”
The co-operative structure remains valid in a society like Singapore as a source of support for the disadvantaged, says Mark Greaves, chairman of ComfortDelGro (SGX:C52
) . “They fulfil an essential need at a time when the market isn’t really doing it in a sufficiently effective way.”
The NTUC Fairprice Co-operative, for example, has a social mission to moderate the cost of living in Singapore.
