Chapter IV: Retailers' cooperative societies.

The purpose of retailer co-operatives is to improve, through the joint efforts of their members, the conditions under which their members carry out their commercial activities. To this end, they may in particular carry on the following activities directly or indirectly on behalf of their members: 1° Supplying their members, in whole or in part, with the goods, commodities or services, equipment and materials necessary for the exercise of their…

No distribution may be made among the cooperative members other than in proportion to the transactions handled with each of them or carried out by the cooperative in an intermediary role between these members and third parties.

Cooperative societies of dispensing pharmacists may not refuse their services in emergencies, to non-associated dispensing pharmacists and to all public or private establishments where patients are treated, when these establishments regularly own a dispensary.

Co-operative societies of retail traders are societies with variable capital constituted in the form of a limited liability company or a public limited company and operating in accordance with the provisions of Book II, Title III, Chapter I. They are governed by the provisions of this chapter and by the non-contradictory provisions of Book II, Titles I to IV and the loi n° 47-1775 du 10 septembre 1947 portant statut…

Without prejudice to the application of the provisions of article 3 bis of law no. 47-1775 of 10 September 1947 on the status of cooperation, any retail trader duly established on the territory of a foreign State may be a member of traders’ cooperatives. The same applies to cooperative societies governed by this chapter, as well as to undertakings registered both in the national register of undertakings as undertakings in…

The articles of association of a société coopérative de commerçants may stipulate that a member wishing to sell his business, or more than 50% of the shares making up the capital of the company operating the business, or the property in which the business is operated, must inform the cooperative. The cooperative has a period of three months from receipt of this information to make an offer to acquire the…

Companies governed by this chapter may form unions between themselves with the same objects as those defined in Article L. 124-1. These unions must comply with the same rules for their formation and operation as the said companies. The first paragraph of Article 9 of the law of 10 September 1947 on the status of cooperation shall apply to them. Unions of retailer cooperative societies may only comprise retailer cooperative…

In a cooperative incorporated as a société anonyme, the directors or the members of the management board and the supervisory board are natural persons who are either partners in their own right, or the chairman of the board of directors, general manager, member of the management board or manager of a company which is itself a partner. The duties of the members of the Board of Directors or the members…

In a cooperative constituted as a limited liability company, the manager(s) is (are) a natural person who is either a member in a personal capacity, or the chairman of the board of directors, the managing director, a member of the management board or the manager of a company which is itself a member. Cooperative societies with more than twenty members must be administered by three or more managers.

The articles of association may provide for retailer cooperative societies to be associated under the conditions set out in l’article 3 bis de la loi du 10 septembre 1947 portant statut de la coopération. In this case, they may not use the services of the cooperative society of which they are members.