PFC Member Board Newsletter, October 20, 2023

ABOUT: The Board of Directors are elected by PFC members to represent them in setting policy and ensure the financial well-being of the Co-op.

Member-owners are encouraged to participate in the Co-op’s decision-making process and to attend monthly board meetings. Time is set aside for public comments at the start of each meeting. Have a topic you would like the board to consider? The deadline for member requested agenda items is two weeks before the scheduled meeting. Contact president@peoplesfood.coop for more information. Our board generally meets on the third Wednesday of the month (subject as always to occasional one-time shifts to accommodate events).

Have a comment to share with us, contact any of the directors.
NEXT BOARD MEETING:
The Board meets the 3rd Wednesday of each month.

Wednesday, November 15, 2023
6:30pm

Join the virtual meeting!

We love members to attend! Please bring ideas, comments, & constructive criticism. The meeting’s agenda will be posted here the weekend before.

WHAT MAKES OUR CO-OP:

A LETTER FROM THE GM

By Angie Voiles

PFC is at a critical point in its 50+ year history. There are many wonderful things happening at PFC each and every day: conversations between shoppers and staff, new recipes on our hot bar and in our prepared foods section, and collaborations with our local producers and farmers, just to name a few. We also face a continually challenging financial reality (more on that in our Board Treasurer’s note). As we look to our future as a natural foods retail co-op in Ann Arbor, we have a goal of returning to a state of profitability. Member-owners and shoppers can help make that happen by shopping at PFC.Sometimes as a General Manager I feel that it’s my job alone to make our co-op profitable. But I never stay in that space for long because I know this is a unique and beautiful community we all made and are making together. What makes our co-op special is:• The commitment of our staff, their expertise, and their hard work on behalf of the co-op.
• The values and investment of our shoppers and member-owners who appreciate what the co-op represents and what it offers.
• This community that our co-op grew from and continues to support. The community that, in turn, supports the co-op.And I think support is the key here- support, not just serve. We exist as this co-op to support our community and uplift it as we (a cooperative grocery store and community) grow, change, and evolve. This is our thing. An Ann Arbor (and beyond) community thing. Some of us founded it, some grew up in it, some discovered it just recently–but if we want it, we have to show up for it and shop. I’ll come right out and say it: we know it isn’t always the most convenient choice (sorry about the lack of car parking!). But we can’t just turn away and fondly remember good times at PFC. If we want this co-op we have to deliberately choose this co-op. We must use it for it to exist. A saying I’ve heard in the cooperative natural food retail world is: No Margin, No Mission. But I prefer: No Profit, No Impact. I want to make an impact, and I believe co-op shoppers and member-owners do too. Show that an independent, environmentally-conscious, community-owned, values-driven, democratically controlled grocery store is something we as a community value and support. We, store operations staff, are motivated to improve offerings and store experience, engage and interact with our community of shoppers, seek efficiency and improve all the aspects of being great grocers, but we are only part of the equation that results in profitability and a thriving future for PFC. The other part of the equation is you.We need you to choose to spend your grocery dollars at PFC. We need you to engage with and support your communities in doing so as well. We can do this but we need to do it together! Support, shop, and help PFC thrive!

AISLE CHATTER:

BRIEF MOMENTS WITH MEMBERS

By Laurin Wolf Co-op Member Since: January 2023; board member since April 2023

What You’ll Find in My Cart: Bulk nuts and grains, medjool dates, Oatly oat milk for coffee and smoothies, and dark chocolate…always dark chocolate.Why I Love the Co-op: I really appreciate the personal, human feel of shopping at the co-op. It delivers a sense of comfort to see familiar faces stocking shelves and at the check out. I also value the co-op’s care for its customers, its employees, and the environment. In a time when the connections between local businesses, local food, and local communities feel as important and as fragile as ever, the co-op helps me to connect with all three.What I’ve Learned from Serving on the Co-op Board: I loved collaborating with the other board members and Angie, the co-op’s GM, and the way each person brings a unique point of view to our shared work. Even during complex conversations, there is a high level of respect and gratitude for one another’s perspectives. As a member of the board Nominations & Elections committee, I’m excited about continuing to diversify the voices in our group. I’ve also learned more about the history of the co-op and its many evolutions, and that makes me hopeful for its future.Want to learn more about joining the PFC board? Email president@peoplesfood.coop or attend an upcoming event!

YOU’RE INVITED TO ATTEND

These events are sponsored by the People’s Food Co-op Board and the Community Outreach Committee

Free Local Cider, Coffee plus Learn about Local Farmers, Nonprofits, Sustainability, & all the great things the Co-op offers!

UPDATE ON PFC’S FINANCIALS:

A LETTER FROM THE TREASURER

By Patrick Zabawa

Welcome to our People’s Food Co-op Newsletter! The PFC Board of Directors has made a commitment to more frequently communicate with you on the financial condition of the PFC, and I’m writing to give an update on that condition as of the fall of 2023.The COVID pandemic radically changed the PFC’s finances and shopping habits of not only Ann Arborites, but Americans as a whole. For the PFC, the lack of commuter traffic downtown, temporary closing of the cafe and prepared food service, and a pivot by shoppers to fewer, larger grocery shopping trips took a severe toll on PFC’s income, from which PFC has begun to – but nowhere near fully yet – recover. Luckily, the generous government grants given during COVID sustained and cushioned the blow to our cash holdings and allowed PFC to survive despite the large losses we ran those years. As noted in Angie’s letter, PFC remains in a precarious financial condition, with recent net operating losses of $197,026 in the first half of 2023 alone. Yet the hard-working PFC staff has surely – but slowly – begun to close the gap between our income and expenses. The Board and staff have continued to find ways to make our operating income and balance sheet stretch further.We know that cutting expenses alone cannot sustain PFC’s future. We don’t have a single easy solution to make our PFC thrive, but there are many positive developments that keep us going. This spring, our Board of Directors went from five to eight members and is the most attentive I’ve seen since I joined in 2020. The Board is actively enhancing PFC in both the short and the long term, knowing that both are necessary to sustain it. The Community Engagement Committee spruced up the PFC plaza in front of the store and is set to host events including Co-op Coffee Convos and Meet Your Farmers – see below for more information. The Board and staff are also trying to understand what location and resources would best help PFC thrive and engaged in a fruitful board retreat focused on these big questions in early October I’ve served on the Board for more than three years now. I see and hear a lot of passion for our PFC and expressions that having a food co-op to frequent is a central way many of us live our values: food for people, not profit; and benefiting stakeholders and our communities locally and beyond. I know many of us would feel a major loss if our community didn’t have a food co-op, and the PFC Board and staff are working hard to prevent that from happening. Shopping at PFC is one of the best ways you can contribute to these efforts, and it will help us all live out our values. We sincerely appreciate your patronage and look forward to your feedback.