A Different Kind of Food Store
added 07/20/09
Board Report
by Kay Litten,
Board President
As I reflect upon beginning my fifth year as a member of the Board of Directors of the Hanover Consumer Cooperative Society, I realize how very much I have learned in the four years I have spent on this board. I am humbled to think that my fellow board members have entrusted the role of presidency to me, and I strive to be worthy of their confidence.
Although members of the board and some Co-op staff generally attend the Consumer Cooperative Management Association (CCMA) conference held annually in June, I have never before been able to attend. This year I had amazing experiences at this meeting. Like our members, I have always believed that our Co-op is extra-special and that Terry Appleby, our very talented general manager, is a man for many seasons. I had not realized that in the larger world of co-ops Hanover holds a place of—for lack of a better word—reverence. As soon as someone would realize that I represented the Hanover Co-op, I felt what seemed like a hush of awe. Folks always wanted to know, “How does Hanover do _________?” You can fill in this blank with anything from member linkage to prepared foods to working with local farmers and more.
Being a member of the Hanover Co-op or being on its board makes one feel as though s/he can criticize and make demands of our co-op—that special family of which we are all a part. But if someone else were to criticize us, just as if someone criticizes a member of the family—errant uncle though that person might be—the response is an immediate defense of that entity which we know and love. What we take for granted can be sources of amazement to the world outside of our own co-op. “What do you mean you sell Coca Cola and Diet Pepsi and Pop Tarts and Lucky Charms?” or “How can you possibly sell breads from 22 local (within 100 miles) bakeries plus Pepperidge Farm and Rudy’s and all those other commercial bakeries, too?” and “But you still sell Oscar Mayer bacon and hot dogs even though you sell sausages from local smokehouses?” “So you can stand there and tell me that you have more than a dozen microbreweries represented as well as foreign beers and all the big name American beers?”
Our answer is contained in the unique quality of the Hanover Co-op—it is a “hybrid grocery store,” not a natural foods store. If a mother wants to bake for her own child’s birthday party the old-fashioned cupcakes her grandmother made for her as a little girl, she can buy her Crisco at one of our stores. If a family’s visitors’ children are addicted to Cocoa Puffs for breakfast, they can run to the Co-op for a box. We sell what our members want to buy; we do not determine what they should not buy (except for cigarettes, which we stopped selling on January 1, 2009). If our members do not see a product on the shelves, someone in the appropriate department will get this item for them whenever possible.
This kind of product range and extraordinary service is unusual in the grocery business, even for some co-ops. The only food co-op in America larger than ours is PCC Natural Markets in Seattle. They have nine stores and are an amazing business, but they sell only natural and organic products.
So our stores are different, and the work of our board differs from the work of other co-op boards, as well. Last year our board participated in a self-evaluation which was the basis for a workshop at CCMA given by board member Mike Yacavone, with support from two fellow board members. In addition, board members and staff led workshops on cooperation among co-ops, open book management, and policy governance.
Your board of directors is out in the world of co-ops learning from others and telling our story. Why don’t you join us? My fellow board members and I are eager to engage in co-op conversations with you, so please seek us out and make this a more meaningful year for our co-op.
All members are invited to attend board meetings held on the third Wednesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. in the Board Room upstairs at the Hanover store. Please contact Board Administrator Genie Braasch at (603) 640-6340 or email her if you plan to come.
What Do You Think?
Have some thoughts about this article? We’d love to hear from you! Please email us your suggestion or question. Want to sign up for the email version of the Co-op News? Join our list!
