by Kenna S. Eaton

Each month, I report to the board on how we are progressing on our long-term goals, which we call our Ends. These Ends reflect our aspirations—what we want to accomplish—and they are what makes us different from a regular grocery store. We publish these reports as a blog to keep our member-owners up to date on what we are doing.

The reports are organized by our five Ends, although not all are discussed in every report. Our refreshed Ends say that, as a result of all we do—

-    Our community is well-served by a strong cooperative grocery store, integral to the lives of our customers, our farmers, and our producers.

-    Our community has a resilient local and regional food economy, supported by our Co-op and our community partners.

-    Our staff and board have the knowledge, skills, and passion to make our cooperative thrive.

-    Our members and customers are proud to shop at a local cooperative grocery that is working to reduce its impact on the environment.

-    Our community is informed, engaged, and empowered to join us in making a difference.

May General Manager’s Report

Everything continues to be all COVID-19 related, and what a whirlwind it continues to be. Since the outbreak, we have been challenged every day to keep up on all fronts. We have needed to be nimble to address the myriad concerns surrounding the topic, from making sure we have enough product on the shelf to ensuring that shoppers and staff feel safe in our store. Adjustments have been made weekly, and sometimes even daily, to ensure that we are following all state and federal regulations as well as CDC and DOH recommendations. And a hearty THANK YOU again to our board of directors and their band of volunteers, who continued in April to shop for and deliver to our members who were unable to do so for themselves.

Market Relevance

In mid-April we launched Coop2Go, a curbside pickup service for members. We were able to merge our online program with the existing volunteer-based shopping/delivery team organized by board members, and between us we are currently offering shopping services seven days per week. We are in the midst of developing an online e-commerce platform that will make ordering easier for shoppers, and we envision offering curbside grocery shopping beyond the COVID crisis. The board-organized shopping and delivery service will wind down as the county opens up and the volunteers go back to work. I understand, though, that one of the volunteers enjoys providing this service so much, she is starting her own delivery service—by bike, no less.

Otherwise, April sales were steady, with half the number of transactions we normally expect—shopper self-regulation in action! Supply chain interruptions continued to make it difficult for us to source products, although we are hearing that the problem lies with manufacturers being unable to replenish their stock, due to low raw materials, limited production, and limited trucking options.

During April we discontinued all special orders, coupons, and weekly deals, but in May we are ready to bring back some of those services.

And in April, we added 27 new Co-op Basics.  These include five Organic Valley cheeses, eight Jason oral care products, twelve Niman Ranch pork products, and two Earth’s Best baby foods.  We also added seven new WIC items.  Because all stores are experiencing difficulty obtaining products, the WIC office generated a list of additional items that we can offer until we are told otherwise. 

Food System Development

In the last two months, we brought in 23 new Local 5 products, with five new vendors:  Duckabush Mushrooms dried mushroom powder, Eagle Harbor Wine, LaughinGnome clay straws & carry bags, Made in Port Townsend personal care products, and Redcoat organic, raw goat milk from Port Angeles.  We also brought in 24 Local WA products, several of them to supplement areas where we weren’t getting enough product from UNFI or other vendors.  We added bulk organic blue cornmeal from Fairhaven, ordered through the Puget Sound Food Hub. 

In the last two months, we brought in 23 new Local 5 products, with five new vendors:  Duckabush Mushrooms dried mushroom powder, Eagle Harbor Wine, LaughinGnome clay straws & carry bags, Made in Port Townsend personal care products, and Redcoat organic, raw goat milk from Port Angeles.  We also brought in 24 Local WA products, several of them to supplement areas where we weren’t getting enough product from UNFI or other vendors.  We added bulk organic blue cornmeal from Fairhaven, ordered through the Puget Sound Food Hub. 

Thriving Workplace

Starting March 22nd, we gave all of our staff an extra $2/hour for all hours worked until April 25th. This pay was awarded in recognition of the increased difficulty with being a grocery store worker during a pandemic. That pay bump has been extended through May 23rd, with the hope that the situation will have eased by that time.

We spent much of our time in recent months ensuring that our staff were safe, that they followed all Health Department mandates in terms of reporting illness, that everyone was able to take leave as needed, and that open shifts were covered with temporary staff. With the implementation of the CARES act, the leave entitlements got a bit more complicated to manage, but our HR and Finance team make sure we follow all requirements and still support staff. Many thanks to the temps who helped us out through the past months.

Outreach

In addition to their regular tasks, our marketing team was kept busy during April ensuring that we had plenty of visible signage around the store to help keep everyone safe. And while in-person classes were cancelled, we held a virtual composting class to help celebrate Earth Day.

Andrea S. is also a key part of the team working to implement an online ordering platform for e-commerce/Coop2GO that will be integrated with our Point Of Sale system, which will allow us to take credit and debit card payments online.