Co-op Market

Grocery & Deli

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Monday - Saturday: 8am - 8pm
Sunday: 10am - 6pm

526 Gaffney Road
Fairbanks, AK 99701
907.457.1023

Letter from the Board: Gratitude in a Time of Transition

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Dear Co-op Market Owners,

Times of change are opportunities to rethink, reimagine, and resolve. Early in the pandemic, the Board of Directors received this advice from our consultant: “Never waste a transition.” And, as you may have noticed, transition has been a thing. We took this advice to heart and have worked hard to rethink our systems and processes. Some of them have been behind the scenes, like restructuring the budget process and updating our governance policies, and others have been more visible, like moving the annual meeting to the spring. While managing these transitions, the board has done our best to respond to the needs of the co-op team, owners and customers.

We recognize that some of these processes need extra attention. This fall our industry consultants, Columinate, offered us an opportunity to hire a dedicated interim general manager (IGM) who could bring the grocery retail expertise necessary to make our co-op thrive. We expect the next few months will bring a business turnaround with Dennis Hanley leading as an experienced IGM. He will then assist in training our new general manager once they are hired.

We acknowledge those who have carried us through these tumultuous times. We are thankful for Shaun Sims for serving as interim general manager in 2020 and Rich Rosenberg for his work as general manager in 2021. They kept our store open and safe, while continuing to make strides in store operations and service to our customers. We’re especially grateful to our team of essential workers, who came to the store with their sleeves rolled up, ready to get the work done.

We are thankful to Madeline Patterson-O’Dell, dedicated board member, who has completed her term. The board will miss her passion for nutrition, healthful food sourcing, and the co-op mission. We are thankful to NCG and Columinate who have supported the store and the board before and throughout the transitions of the past two years.

Finally, we thank you for continuing to support the co-op. We are more than a grocery store: We are a community. When you support the co-op with your time, dollars, and even “likes” on social media, you are investing in the type of community you want to live in.

The board is motivated to work for our values-driven co-op, and we remain committed to our purpose: “We serve our community and planet with a cooperative grocery business focused on healthful options.” Our co-op makes our community a better place, and we will keep doing the hard work so that it can continue to do so far into the future.

In cooperation,

Art Gelvin, Brian Kassof, Patrice Lee, Anduin McElroy, Madeline Patterson-O’Dell, Rich Seifert, Hilary Shook

2020-2021 Co-op Market Board of Directors

Date Changes for Annual Meeting & Board Election

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September 3, 2021


Dear Co-op Market Owner,

Your co-op’s board and management team have taken the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to reevaluate how we work together and how we serve you, our Owners. One of the most visible and meaningful components of our work as a cooperative is our annual Owner’s meeting.

For the past several years, we’ve met in October to hear reports on operations and finances, review issues that vitally affect Co-op Market, transact business such as bylaws changes and election of board members, and, perhaps most importantly, gather as a community.

Upon review, we recognized that holding the annual meeting in October puts undue strain on staff and management during the holiday season ordering crunch, which is already a hectic time for a grocery store. To alleviate this strain, the board has decided to move our annual meeting to mid-April. This year, we will still hold an abbreviated virtual meeting in October to present operational and financial updates, but we will move our larger meeting and board election to the Spring.

Please join us!
Our virtual meeting will take place at 4 p.m. Saturday, October 23rd. Look for an invitation with a Zoom link closer to that date. We plan to resume our traditional in-person community gathering, board election, and annual meeting on Saturday, April 17th, 2022. We’ll communicate details for April as soon as we know them.

Please help us guide the co-op!
Even though we’re delaying our election until Spring, you can still get involved with the board now, as we have an opening for a board member to be appointed in October. The appointee will serve until the April election.

We accept board candidate applications on a rolling basis. If you are available to be considered for appointment in October, please submit your application now. Three seats will be open for our April election, and we’ll start accepting applications for these in January.

As a food co-op, we depend upon our Owners to provide leadership by volunteering for board service. Our board members help by crafting long-range strategies for fulfilling our mission while upholding our values and monitoring our progress to ensure we’re moving forward in the right direction.

If you wonder whether board leadership is right for you, please attend one of our regular board meetings on the third Monday of the month.

You can access both the webinar and regular monthly meetings at this Zoom link.

Meeting ID: 838 0329 6836
Passcode: 303122

For more information and a copy of the board candidate application, please go to the governance page of our website.

We look forward to meeting the next generation of committed, engaged co-op board leaders. When you invest your dollars, energy, and time in our co-op, you are voting for the kind of community you want to live in.

In cooperation,

Co-op Market Board of Directors
Art Gelvin, Brian Kassof, Patrice Lee, Anduin McElroy, Madeline Patterson-O’Dell, Hilary Shook, Rich Seifert

A Letter of Gratitude

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As 2020 draws to a close, we pause to reflect. In the darkest days of this strangest of years, we find our hearts warmed by gratitude.

We are profoundly grateful to you, our Owners and community, and to our staff. Thanks to all of you, we’ve navigated 2020’s uncertainties and surprises, and now we find ourselves poised for a healthy New Year.

It would be impossible to describe 2020 without mentioning the challenges. The pandemic forced us to reinvent the way we operate – more than once. We closed our Deli seating area, revamped our Bulk department, started a curbside grocery service, and created new cleaning protocols. At the same time, wildfires, severe storms, and even a derecho created shortages and disrupted supply lines from Seattle and beyond. Like almost all small businesses, we’ve had a hard time finding stockers, cashiers, and buyers, so we’ve sometimes had to operate with a skeleton crew.

So much has changed for all of us. We expect the challenges and disruptions to continue for some time. Yet here we still are, in some ways stronger than ever, taking care of each other.

For this, we say thank you.

To our community:
• Thank you for continuing to shop with us. You’re making fewer shopping trips, but you’re buying more when you do come in. Our 2020 projected sales growth was 4%, but our sales are more than 10% higher than last year. Your support during the pandemic has been phenomenal.
• Thank you for wearing a mask in the store. You’re helping us keep our employees and our community safe. We especially appreciate those who don’t believe masks are necessary but wear them anyway. Your generosity of spirit helps reassure others in a time when so many are afraid.
• Thank you for your generosity and concern for our community. Although you’re making 16% fewer shopping trips, Lend-a-Hand donations are up 5% this year. July round-ups increased by 10%, and September was 14% up! (Owners, don’t forget to vote for next year’s Lend-a-Hand recipients. Learn more here.)

To our staff:
• Thank you for showing up day after day, despite the risks and stress. We know you didn’t sign up to be on the front lines of a pandemic, but you’ve risen to the challenge. This year has revealed how essential your work really is. We are grateful for your dedication and cheerful service.
• Thank you for shouldering extra responsibilities and filling in wherever you’re needed. You’re keeping our store clean, safe, and stocked.
• Thank you for handling difficult interactions with grace and kindness, always. You are an inspiration.
As we look ahead to 2021, we are excited to welcome our new general manager, Rich Rosenberg. He comes to us with extensive leadership experience and expertise in groceries, specialty foods, and deli and prepared foods. He has held leadership roles at Whole Foods in Austin; Balducci’s in Bethesda, MD; and most recently, Fairway Market in New York City. Expect to see Rich at the co-op later this month. When you do, say hello. He’ll be getting acclimated to life in the Far North, and we’re eager to see where his enthusiasm and knowledge can take us in the coming years.

In cooperation,

Co-op Market Board of Directors:
Art Gelvin, Brian Kassof, Anduin McElroy, Chase Nelson, Madeline Patterson-O’Dell, Hilary Shook, Rich Seifert

Shaun Sims, Interim General Manager

P.S. If you wondered whether you’d missed our annual newsletter, which we usually print in October, expect a report on 2019 after the first of the year. COVID, staffing issues, and our GM search interrupted our regular publishing process.

Call for Candidates: We Need Your Voice on Our Board of Directors

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Calling all Co-op Market Owners! We need your voice on our board of directors.

Cooperative Principle #2 is Democratic Member Control, and our co-op is governed by a seven-person board of directors. Board members are Owners and are elected by their fellow Owners. This year, we have three seats with three-year terms up for election.

Serving on the board is a great way to be more involved with your community, and you’ll be helping shape the future of your co-op.

Candidate applications are due August 31st. Candidate packets, including an application form, are available here, or pick one up at Customer Service.

Hey, Owners! It’s time to vote!

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What? Are you sick of all the election rhetoric already? Think your vote doesn’t count?

Well, at the co-op, it does. In fact, we need votes from at least 10% of our Owners for our election to be valid. That means we need at least 327 votes this year.

What are you voting for? We have four open seats on our nine-member board of directors. This year we have five candidates for those four seats. Our directors serve three years.

Having a knowledgeable, strong board is critical to the continued health and success of your co-op. Board members serve as stewards, ensuring that the co-op is legally and financially sound. They represent you, their fellow Owners, in a democratic process, making sure your values are reflected in long-range goals and decisions

How can you vote? There are several options.

  • If you have an email address on file with us, we have sent you an invitation to vote on-line using My Direct Vote from Survey and Ballot Systems. The on-line election process is very easy, and the ballot includes profiles of each of our candidates.

Note: The emails went out at 8:30 a.m. today (9/22). If you didn’t receive an email, please check your spam folder. The email is titled “Important: Login Info for Co-op Market Board Election,” and it was sent by Kristin Summerlin at Co-op Market from noreply@directvote.net. (If you didn’t receive a ballot and want to vote on-line, please email marketing@coopmarket.org with your name, Owner number and correct email address. We’ll send another copy of the invitation to you.)

  • We are mailing candidate profiles and paper ballots to Owners who don’t have emails on file. You can vote and return your ballot by mail or drop it off at the ballot box at Customer Service.
  • And of course candidate profiles and paper ballots are available in the store.

Voting continues until 5 p.m. October 20th, and results will be announced that night at our Annual Meeting. As in years past, the Annual Meeting will be held at Birch Hill Recreation Center, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and a light soup supper provided by our Deli, followed by a short business meeting and door prizes.

Last year, nearly 14% of you voted. Let’s see if we can get that number up even higher this year!

It’s Time to Vote: Board Elections and Amended Bylaws

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election poster 2015COOPERATIVE PRINCIPLE #2: DEMOCRATIC MEMBER CONTROL. Cooperatives are democratic organizations controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting their policies and making decisions.

Every year, our Owners help shape the future of our co-op by voting for a Board of Directors. In 2015, we have five open seats on our nine-member board. The ballot also includes Owner confirmation of one director who was appointed by the board to fill a vacancy.

This year, Owners also have the opportunity to approve amendments to our bylaws, which have not been updated since they were adopted in 2011. Bylaws are the written rules that govern our co-op. They are a legal document that sets forth the structure of the board and co-op, determines the rights of our Owners and the procedures for exercising those rights. Bylaws guide our board in conducting business, ensure fairness and provide legal protections.

You can view both the amended bylaws and the original version adopted in 2011 by clicking here.

Voting is your right and your responsibility as an Owner of Co-op Market.

Last year we offered our Owners the option to vote on-line for the first time. Electronic voting was a great success, so we’re doing it again this year. If we have a valid email address on file for you, you should receive a link to the on-line ballot via email. Click here for helpful suggestions on how to vote electronically.

If we don’t have your email address, we will send a paper ballot via the USPS. Paper ballots are also available in the store, or click here to print your own copy.

(BTW: You can help us leave trees in the ground, reduce paper waste and save money on postage by making sure your email address is current. We’ve provided a space on the paper ballot for an update.)

The deadline for voting is 5 p.m. October 15. Election results will be announced that night at our Annual Meeting at Birch Hill Recreation Area.

We must have ballots from a minimum of 10% of our Owners for the election to be valid, so your vote is very important! (Each Owner number gets one vote: Please confer with others who share your Ownership before voting.)

THANK YOU FOR INVESTING IN OUR COMMUNITY-OWNED GROCERY STORE – AND FOR HELPING GUIDE IT!

Thank You: Helen McLean to Retire from the Co-op Market Board of Directors

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By Hans Geier, Past Vice President

Long-time volunteer Helen McLean has submitted her resignation to the Co-op Market Board of Directors. We want to recognize and honor her selfless and generous service.

Helen was there at the beginning. I met her at one of our very first co-op meetings, about seven years before our grand opening. Through the years she has given so much to our cooperative. She’s always given freely of her time and efforts. She even provided the Board with a regular meeting place in her family’s beautiful home. So many times we gathered there for potluck dinners before the meetings. Those potlucks were definitely a highlight of our earlier days.

During our first years, many of our activities revolved around planning and executing fundraising events.  Helen was always one of the first to volunteer and seemed to get most everything done, making our fundraising efforts seem effortless and fun.

Now the Board will be less occupied with fundraising as we turn our attention to expediting the Co-op’s success. Board membership has changed, and we’ve welcomed new members (AnneMarie Billingsley, Angela Matz and Shannon McClure) and new officers (President Anduin McElroy and Vice President Chase Nelson).

In keeping with the Co-op spirit, we “old” Board members (Rob Leach, Rich Seifert and I) find it very gratifying to see the Board leadership be transferred to the “next generation.” We are confident that our cooperative will continue to grow and prosper as an iconic – yet new – Fairbanks business.

Thank you, Helen for your faithful service. We wish you well in your new career at the Lodge at Black Rapids. I am sure it will be a wonderful fit for your talents and work ethic. And we know you’ll always be an integral part of the Co-op.

Help Shape the Future: Join Our Board of Directors

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You own a grocery store! Have you ever thought about it that way? You took a leap of faith and invested your money in Co-op Market Grocery & Deli. You built a vibrant new retail food co-op, the first one in Alaska.

As a Member-Owner, you can do more to ensure our success than just shop with us. You can help shape the future of Co-op Market and make sure we remain true to our values and mission as we continue to grow. You can serve on our Board of Directors.

Co-ops are not just businesses: They are democratic organizations governed by an elected Board of Directors made up of Member-Owners. Our nine-member board is the legal steward of the Co-op and fulfills the obligations of running a business. The board provides leadership, vision and guidance. It oversees wise use of Co-op resources and sets long-range goals.

Cooperatives are based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity. In the tradition of their founders, cooperative members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. (Find out more about cooperative values and principles here.)

This year the board will be finalizing its board policies and Ends Statement and will begin to work with our General Manager to clarify our plan for growth and expansion.

Do you believe in the cooperative values and principles? Are you passionate about bringing good healthy food to the community? Do you want to help create a flourishing local economy with a real focus on sustainability? Do you have a background in business or volunteer organizations and relevant life experiences to share? You’re an ideal candidate!

Here are some things you need to know.

The Board of Directors

  • oversees the Co-op’s financial condition.
  • connects to our owners.
  • shapes our Co-op’s vision and works closely with our General Manager to set long-term strategies.

The Co-op Market board operates under the Carver Policy Governance Model.

To be eligible, candidates

  • must be Member-Owners of Co-op Market Grocery & Deli in good standing.
  • cannot be a Co-op Market employee.
  • must know how to focus, communicate clearly, and understand strategic thinking.
  • should have prior experience making decisions in a group setting.
  • must be able to undertake fiduciary responsibility on behalf of the Co-op and its owners.

Directors serve for a two-year term. For 2014/2015, four of the nine board seats are up for election.

The board meets monthly. Directors commit to an average of 4 to 8 hours of service per month, depending on committee and project workload. They also commit to attend yearly national cooperative training and conferences.

Applications are available here, or you can get a paper copy at the customer service desk. Completed applications, along with a current digital photograph, are due by September 5, 2014. (Your photograph should be a headshot only and in .jpg format.) All Member-Owners will receive candidate bios, photos and a ballot. On-line and paper ballot voting will begin on September 25. Winning candidates will be announced at our annual meeting on October 23.

For more information, please contact Board Chairman Robert Leach at board@coopmarket.org.

Store Hours

  • Monday-Saturday: 8am – 8pm
  • Sunday: 9am – 7pm

 

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Location

526 Gaffney Road
Fairbanks, AK 99701

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