Solutions

Guiding the Fundamentals of Co-op Business

By Columinate|2023-05-05T20:25:48-04:00April 10th, 2019|

Ray Williams is Seward Community Co-op’s operations manager and recognizes that even though the co-op has achieved a lot over the years, especially in terms of growing its operations and diversifying staff and leadership, it is also an organization currently in transition. “The past few years have been very intense with opening the second store, increased competition and unionization.” Like many grocery cooperatives, Seward has felt the pressure to provide good wages, pay vendors a fair price, maintain high standards of service and remain sustainable and profitable.

How Coaching Benefits You as a Leader

By Patricia Cumbie|2023-05-05T20:25:49-04:00March 14th, 2019|

In a competitive economy with slim profit margins, hiring a consultant or a coach can feel like a luxury line item. Yet feeling overtasked and having to do more with less is the perfect reason for hiring a coach. Coaches can help leaders prioritize and focus their energies, leverage their skills, and learn new ways to respond to both interpersonal and marketplace demands. In [...]

Leadership Development for Expansion Readiness

By Columinate|2023-05-05T20:25:50-04:00March 14th, 2019|

The Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op is uniquely situated in small town Middlebury, Vermont. When they were ready to expand, they reached out to Columinate for assistance with a member capital campaign.

Focus on Outreach During PR Crisis

By Patricia Cumbie|2023-05-05T20:25:55-04:00January 9th, 2019|

Nothing stings more than public criticism, and the longer it’s sustained, the more damaging it can be to an organization’s reputation. Especially when, despite everyone’s best intentions, something goes wrong, or people are upset about something. In today’s wired world, the opportunities for people to share their impressions online have grown exponentially, sometimes amplifying negative word of mouth. It can easily become a chronic [...]

Restoring Trust and Vibrancy in a Co-op Community

By Columinate|2023-05-05T20:25:56-04:00January 9th, 2019|

Central Co-op Seattle, WA Year founded: 1978 Number of members: 14,200 Consumer member investment: $100 Worker member investment: $6,340 (12 years) Number of employees: 120 Locations: Seattle and Tacoma (opening date late spring TBD) When the Central Co-op in Seattle, Wash. proposed a vote to merge with the Tacoma Food Co-op in 2015, the memberships of both co-ops overwhelmingly approved it. Both communities saw [...]

Perpetuating Board Leadership Through Co-op Storytelling

By Patricia Cumbie|2023-05-05T20:25:57-04:00December 12th, 2018|

Board perpetuation is a perennial topic for boards. Turnover happens year to year as a cyclical part of board service. So, finding ways to maintain consistently strong governance needs to be a priority and continual task. Things can never stay exactly they as they are (or used to be), so how do boards keep positive momentum going? How do they individually and collectively share [...]

Expanding the Boundaries of Retailing in Local Communities

By Patricia Cumbie|2023-05-05T20:26:03-04:00November 7th, 2018|

Contemporary food co-ops have begun important discussions in their organizations around equity and inclusion. As part of that process, they’ve had to accept and deal with some painful truths that their co-ops have not always been perceived as inclusive, especially through the shopping experience.

Marketing Planning that Cuts Through the Clutter

By Jeanie Wells|2023-05-05T20:27:05-04:00October 10th, 2018|

Retailers face lots of challenges, profit margins are small, inventory needs to turn, and the competition is fierce. Getting customers into the store and keeping them satisfied should be everyone’s focus to boost sales and enhance profitability. Retailers faced with flat or declining sales need to take a closer look at their marketing and customer service experience. Since food co-ops are owned by the [...]

Using Monitoring Reports to Ensure Organizational Alignment

By Jade Barker|2023-06-20T23:00:16-04:00September 12th, 2018|

The Board’s Job Creating board policies is no easy task. Clearly articulating the board’s expectations of a general manager takes a lot of energy and focus—so boards can justifiably congratulate themselves once they’ve written down their expectations in a way that a manager can easily understand. But the board’s work doesn’t end there. Many boards, once they’ve created their policies and learned to [...]

Gain Sales and Impact from Great Storytelling

By Patricia Cumbie|2023-05-05T20:27:10-04:00August 3rd, 2018|

Local food is a powerful branding force in grocery retailing. The huge shift in mainstream consumer demand regarding fresh, healthful eating and a desire to know where food comes from has changed how food is marketed and merchandised. Concurrent with the rise of “local” food, online retailing has changed how people buy food. It’s not enough to say its geographic origin. It’s not enough [...]

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