Governance in Colombian food retail: a case study

ABSTRACT We characterized three food retail models that coexist in Colombia: corporate, traditional, and alternative, and investigated the governance within each model in terms of regulation and transparency through a case study. We established the geographic density of the three models and found that in Colombia, the corporate model is widespread; the traditional model has low concentration, but a high presence; and the alternative model has a growing albeit low presence. Through our case study we found that these models have different behaviors in their core production, distribution activities, and forms of governance. Even though private regulation prevails in the corporate and traditional models, the traditional model contains specific characteristics of public regulation, while the alternative model is grounded on social regulation.