Can you tell me in 10 minutes what the best practices for finance are that I can use at my co-op?" This question has been repeatedly asked of us in our respective work with co-op finance managers...
It seems the printer for Cooperative Grocer experienced some unusual difficulty in binding the November issue, and there are a number of copies out there with 3-6 and 31-34 taking the place of 7-...
In the years since 2005, when the Food Co-op 500 pilot project began to challenge the sector to have 500 food co-ops by 2015, a lot has been accomplished in an attempt to achieve this goal. As a...
There has been much discussion, debate and downright argument about the role of the board in the strategic process of our co-ops. "Isn't that getting into operations? Aren't our hands tied by our...
Before the Olympia Food Co-op became a two-store operation with over 80 staff members, resolving internal conflicts was a direct but mostly informal process. If a conflict arose, such as an...
Have you ever tried to sell a product without a sign? If you have, you know how important signage is to grocery sales. With upwards of 70 percent of all purchases being unplanned, good signage on...
White River Junction is a small town at the confluence of the White and Connecticut Rivers in central Vermont. For the past 35 years, it has been the home of the Upper Valley Food Co-op. The town...
When the Hanover Co-op approached us with the idea of opening a branch store right across the river from us, we were in the final negotiation process to buy our own building. In fact...
Spreading inspiring co-op stories. Developing more co-ops to serve more people. Building more collaboration among different co-op sectors: credit unions, food co-ops, worker co-ops, housing co-ops...
[Below: excerpts from a column in Cooperative Business Journal (Sept./Oct. 2011) by Paul Hazen, who is president and CEO of the National Cooperative Business Association. ...
Cooperators in the U.S. and around the world continue to prepare broad, multi-faceted campaigns for 2012, declared by the United Nations General Assembly to be the International Year of...
The national conversation around healthy food access has recently gained significant momentum and attention. While co-ops have pioneered many food system innovations, including...
