Are You Ready to Compete? A crowded marketplace is the new reality
By Mel Braverman, Nicole Klimek, Jeanie Wells 184 May-June 2016 In the back of our minds we knew that [insert name of competitor here] was coming. It was only a matter of time before grocery [...]
Beefing Up Your Marketing Plan: Making sure yours is still relevant
By Nicole Klimek, Joy Rust 184 May-June 2016 As competition creeps up to #1 on the “food co-op worry list,” many co-ops find themselves wondering how they can combat declining sales while not investing an [...]
Ambitious Community Outreach Yields Big Results
Common Ground Food Co-op Urbana, IL Year founded: 1974 Number of members: 5,800 Member equity: $60 Number of employees: 95 Retail square feet: 8,000 Common Ground Food Co-op in Urbana, Ill. has been one of [...]
Good Reporting: Helping boards understand workplace conditions
By Michael Healy 184 May-June 2016 Co-ops bring to life their member-owners’ common values, and for most co-ops these include a desire for the co-op to be a great workplace. In the event that your [...]
Governance Considerations in Multi-Store Co-ops
We’re in a position not unlike the years after WWII when the small grocery cooperatives began to fold in the wake of full service supermarkets with vast parking lots. Jerry Voorhis, former president of The [...]
Board Decisions Between Meetings
As a general practice, boards should avoid making decisions between regular meetings. A large part of the value of having a board in a leadership position is that good decisions can come from incorporating many [...]
When and Who to Hire (or Contract) for Startups
As a new co-op project progresses through the 3 stages of the development process and the workload and complexity of the co-op development process increases, founding team and board members often wonder when to hire [...]
Courageous Leadership Today Stronger Co-ops Tomorrow
As Director of Co-op Development for NCG, Dave Olson has a unique perspective on what it'll take for co-ops to survive and thrive in this 'New Normal' of increased competition and slowing sales growth. In [...]
The Hero’s Journey of Growth
Delene Porter, the General Manager at Daily Groceries in Athens, GA shares what she calls the Hero's Journey that is the path for the future of her co-op. Shedding parts of their past, acquiring skills [...]