Historically, co-ops arise from the ashes of a dead or dying company where the workers know the process inside and out. Edit: the other instances (much fewer)

Historically, co-ops arise from the ashes of a dead or dying company where the workers know the process inside and out. Edit: the other instances (much fewer) are when the company founders either start with a co-op in mind or want to transition their company to one as part of their legacy