A Tale of Two Co-ops
Brent Finnegan -- July 17th, 2010
Why have the Friendly City Food Co-Op’s fundraising efforts flourished in Harrisonburg, while plans for a co-op in Staunton fizzled? Rebecca Martinez writes in the Staunton News Leader about this case study in local economics and community organizing.
In 2006, groups in both Harrisonburg and Staunton began planning their own member-owned downtown grocery stores that would sell locally grown produce and organic health food items, and would offer discounts and, potentially, owner rebates depending on the store’s success. A market researcher determined that both cities had a potentially viable customer base.
Each group hosted social events — such as parties and film screenings — to entice members to buy a share of their co-op, thus providing up-front capital to get the business started. It was a years-long fundraising process, with each group writing grant proposals and recruiting members and donors . . .
While the Harrisonburg store is selecting floor layouts, Staunton’s plans have long since come to a halt. (read more)
Tags: FC2, FCFC, local food
cheers to the board and volunteers who have made our coop a reality!
Thanks for covering this, hburgnews. From an organizational perspective, the support and resources other cooperatives have shared with us have been critical to our success (not to mention, the thousands of volunteer hours!). The Friendly City Food Co-op is excited for the opportunity to support other start-ups and can’t wait to see more grocery co-ops popping up all over the Valley in the years to come!