Bobby Sullivan, the general manager of French Broad Food Co-op has some clear and direct ideas about how co-ops can and must thrive amidst growing competition. The area of Asheville, North Carolina is an extremely competitive market for natural foods, and the co-op needed to step up its game. By focusing on excellent service and marketplace differentiation as a co-op, they are seeing rapid [...]
For many years GreenStar Natural Foods Market “peacefully coexisted” with its local competition in Ithaca, New York. As more conventional grocers are wooing the natural food consumer with convenience and price points, the pressure is on. Brandon Kane, the co-op’s general manager has responded with a focus on community, diversity, collaboration and efficient operations. “We want to overcome our elitist perception,” Kane said, as [...]
City Market Onion River Co-op Burlington, VT Year founded: 1973 Member investment: $200 equity Number of members: 10,000 Retail square feet: 12,000 Number of employees: 215 The City Market Onion River Co-op in Burlington, Vt. is a thriving downtown food co-op celebrating its 40th anniversary. It’s poised for growth and with a membership of 10,000 people has made a real impact during its history. [...]
Chris Dilley, General Manager, Peoples Food Co-op, Kalamazoo, Mich. You won’t want to miss this video of Chris Dilley, general manager of Peoples Food Co-op in Kalamazoo, Mich. Dilley speaks very eloquently about the impact of their co-op’s growth on the community and as well as how growth has begun to create a conversation about greater access to healthy food for everyone. He spoke [...]
Hear directly from the ICA President about the undeniable importance of Participation in building the success of the Cooperative Movement. Dame Green discusses the role of Participation as one of the components of a successful cooperative decade as laid out in the ICA's Blueprint For a Cooperative Decade.
At the Cooperative Café in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 2013, participants discussed the question of growth and Sarah Christensen, general manager at GreenTree Cooperative Grocery in Mt. Pleasant, Mich., addressed the group about GreenTree’s approach to growth in the past and how they are addressing it now. The co-op had been founded in the 1970s and had stayed a small storefront for many years because [...]
Robin Seydel, Membership & Community Development Coordinator La Montañita Co-op, New Mexico
Martha Whitman, Board President La Montañita Co-op, New Mexico
Steve Nance, General Manager Oryana Natural Foods Market, Traverse City, MI
Sarah Christensen, General Manager Green Tree Natural Grocery, Mt. Pleasant, MI According to Green Tree Natural Grocery GM Sarah Christensen, planning for growth is not an option. You've got to 'Grow or Die'. This is an excellent short talk to incite and inspire.
