New Year’s Message (2023)
from the General Manager

December 2023

As we wrap up 2023, which is also our Co-op’s ninth year in business as a public-facing retail store, I am thrilled to report that it was another stellar year for us.

We ended the year with $7.4 million in sales, which is a 5% increase over last year. We also purchased well over $1.8 million in foods and other goods directly from Maine farmers and producers. Thanks once again, to all of you, for making our Co-op a significant economic engine in our local foods’ economy. Your purchasing decisions make a tangible difference here.

In 2023, our Co-op also grew to over seven thousand Member-Owners. Back in 2014, we were given a challenge to grow to over two thousand Member-Owners. At the time, this was considered the benchmark for sustainability and proof that Portland embraced us. Now that we have more than tripled that, I feel that Portland has embraced us and considers us a valuable part of the local economy.

Next December, our retail store turns ten years old, and you’d better believe we are going to have a party!

We are far enough removed from our early days that many of you might think that the Portland Food Co-op has always been here, or at least existed for years in some form similar to our current state. You might not know that we started as an idea by a group of friends meeting in a living room in 2006. You might not know that we then spent the next eight years evolving as a buying club, hosted by several property-owning benefactors around Portland. You might not know that it was only in 2012 that we dared to start thinking about opening a real store. You might not know that dozens of people volunteered hundreds of hours of their time and talent to do all of the work necessary to bring our retail store to fruition.

Saying we are community-owned does not do justice to our story. We are community-inspired, community-planned, and community-created. In an age where independent grocery stores are disappearing, our community-owned grocery store is bucking that trend. We are not just surviving, we are thriving.

In an age where food producers and retail food workers are some of the least valued and compensated people in our workforce, we are bucking that trend as well. We passionately believe in paying our local farmers and producers a fair price for their goods. We are also committed to providing the best wages and benefits possible for our staff. They are all local food system professionals and deserve that level of respect.

Let me close out 2023 with one of my favorite quotes. I am continually inspired by the words of anthropologist, Margaret Mead—

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”

Your participation in our Co-op is creating change. Thank you for this.

In Cooperation,
John Crane
General Manager

2023 - Letter from the Board of Directors

Fellow Member Owners.

Your Board of Directors will be starting the process of seeking new Board Members for our Co-op in November. We are seeking people who:

• Are regular PFC shoppers

• Are interested in learning about how a cooperative functions and engages with other Member-Owners and shoppers

• Want to help guide the PFC through future growth

• Have experience and knowledge in one or more of these areas: community engagement, local food community, business, marketing, strategic planning, board development

One of the requirements for applying to be on the Board is to attend a Board meeting.

If you are interested in learning more about being a Board member, we will be having pizza and non-alcoholic beverages at the November Board meeting on November 28th, 2023 from 5:45-8:30pm.

You will have the opportunity to chat with current Board members and experience a Board meeting.

Please email board@portlandfood.coop to indicate your interest in joining us on November 28, 2023.

Thanks,
The Portland Food Co-op Board of Directors

Remembering Kindness (2022)

A New Year’s Message From the General Manager

December 2022

I often struggle developing a theme for my end of year letter. So many disparate events occur over the course of a year that they do not lend themselves to a succinct narrative. This year was different. I will forever mark 2022 as the year that the people in our cooperative community remembered, or better yet, relearned kindness.

This comes with two disclaimers. The first is that many of you have always been and continue to be kind people. This is not a judgment of anyone’s personal character. Secondly, I know well that the world is still filled with hardship, injustice, and inequity and am not discounting that tragic reality.

I am just speaking from my personal experience of spending a sizable portion of my waking hours in our Co-op and interacting with our customers, Member-Owners, staff, vendors, and members of our wider community. My personal lived experience from within our co-op is that you all collectively got nicer this past year.

I speak from solid ground when I say this. I have been our Co-op’s General Manager since 2015 and came with ten years of previous co-op management experience. I also spent about ten years working in the non-cooperative world. I have a broad frame of reference.

The underlying fact is that 2020 through 2021 were horrible times to be a worker in any retail environment, and our Co-op was not immune to that. Granted the pandemic was a stressful time for everyone but it does not excuse the level of rudeness and hostility that was lashed out on our staff and all retail workers daily.

Many people just lost all sense of manners and basic human compassion. Just to give a sense of the impact, from our opening up until 2020 our staff turnover rate was consistently less than 20% annually. Currently we only have four staff members remaining (including myself) who were here prior to January 2020. In 2021 we had slightly less than 100% turnover. The exit interviews were a repetition of some version of “I can’t do this any longer.”

What a difference a year makes. I do not want to dwell on the bad because 2022 has seen such a refreshing return of kindness. We still get our quota of grumpiness, but it is pale in comparison to previous years. Our staff turnover rate has returned to pre-pandemic levels, and we are finally fully staffed once again. We have always been blessed with a great staff, which is something I never take for granted. The staff that we have right now, however, is truly remarkable. They each bring positive energy and intent to work every day and just need room to grow. Many of them are new to the co-op world so I appreciate you being patient with them as they learn their jobs and get to know us.

There was a while where I had to meditate and recite personal affirmations before opening my email in the morning. That has changed dramatically. Hearing from all of you is a big part of my job and I always welcome emails but it is so much nicer when your comments come framed with “I appreciate all that you do but would you consider….” as opposed to “I am shocked and appalled that you are doing / not doing ….”

My 2022 emails leaned much more towards the compassionate side of the spectrum. We are collectively embracing the 7th Cooperative Principle, “Concern for Community.”

So, I will enter 2023 with a solid sense of optimism about the future of our cooperative. Having just topped $7 million in sales in 2022, and grown our Member-Ownership to over 6500, we have the momentum to continue being an economic engine for the local food’s economy and making an impact in our local community.

In Cooperation,
John Crane
General Manager

A New Year’s Message (2021)
From the General Manager

December 2021

I tend to be quite linear in both my thinking and my writing. Those of you who have been reading my messages for a while have gotten accustomed to that. However, this time of year, I become more reflective, so I hope you enjoy and appreciate the change in perspective.

In 2021, after twenty years of cooperative management experience, including six years here at the Portland Food Co-op, I finally understand the value of the cooperative model.

I expect that this statement might cause some concern for some of you, "What? We've been entrusting our Co-op to someone who didn't understand the model?"

Let me clarify.

Over the last two decades, I have developed a solid understanding of and appreciation for the cooperative model both as an ideology and an economic system. The world would be a much better place if there were more cooperatives. What 2021, and this entire pandemic period, has taught me that cooperatives have an ingrained resiliency that no other business model has. It comes from our intention to collectively gather to be a force for good in our community.

Let me provide an example.

Think back to January 2021, before anyone was vaccinated, and we were all socially distanced and living under the fear of two weeks of quarantine should we come in contact with the wrong person. During the third week in January, two Co-op staff members tested positive for COVID. Through contact tracing, we determined that several staff members should quarantine. We did, however, have enough staff to keep the Co-op open. This did not feel right to me, however.

While these two staff members could have contracted COVID separately in their personal lives, I was concerned that we could have in-house transmission. I decided to close the Co-op for two weeks, pay for everyone's lab test, and pay for everyone's missed time. Unfortunately, this closing caused our Co-op to lose over $20,000 in fresh food (fortunately, we donated most of it to local food banks) and lose a total of $80,000 for January. As the steward of our Co-op's finances, I was genuinely concerned that this might be my last month as the GM of the Co-op. We have never lost that much money in one month. Our Board, however, was very supportive and understanding and worked with me.

I was especially concerned that many of you would stay away out of fear once we reopened. The standard practice in the larger retail community was to be very hush-hush about COVID cases and never shut down. Would total transparency harm our reputation and our income? That did not happen. You all came back the next week, and our sales not only rebounded but accelerated. Within four months, we had recouped all of the losses from this shutdown. We did the right thing by our staff and community, and you all supported us and ensured our financial recovery.

2021 was not done with us yet, however. So many disruptions would follow that prevented us from providing the fresh, clean, fully stocked, and community-engaged co-op that you have rightfully come to expect. Last spring, retail workers nationwide decided to no longer work in a public-facing environment during a global pandemic. This contributed to "The Great Resignation," which affected us as much as anyone else. At one point, we were down ten staff members. Our Front-End Manager, Em Seekins, and I were the only two managers left standing. (I cannot complete this section without giving a massive shout to Em. They went above and beyond to help carry the Co-op through one of the most challenging periods in our history.) We had only started to recover from that when the term "supply chain disruption" became part of our lexicon. Huge gaps began appearing across the Co-op's shelves as our deliveries started getting shorted by up to 50%.

Fortunately, the Co-op is ending 2021 fully stocked and fully staffed. We have survived the most tumultuous year that we have ever experienced. We also have an incredibly talented and dedicated staff and management team. I am genuinely grateful for each one of them.

Despite all of the obstacles thrown at us, you, our Member-Owners, kept supporting your Co-op. Our 2021 sales are going to top $6.1 million. This allowed us to purchase over $1.7 million worth of food and other goods from Maine farmers and producers. Our Farm Fresh Rewards program participation allowed us to provide vouchers for over $38,000 worth of free local fruits and vegetables to low-income community members. Our Register Round-Up program generated $42,000, divided between twelve local non-profits.

Your support also allows us to provide better compensation for our staff. In 2022 we will offer comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance for just under $100 per month. We have also been able to increase our paid time off. All staff accrue three weeks of paid time off their first year, based on the number of hours worked per week. Time off increases to four weeks per year at the start of the second year.

Even through a year fraught with limited services, minimal staffing, empty shelves, and a complete shutdown, our Member-Owners have stood by us and continue to shop.

This is what I meant when I said that I finally understood the actual value of the cooperative model. Even when a co-op does not meet all of the needs and expectations of its members, there is still the inherent ownership and trust that helps us endure the hard times and flourish in the good times. We have all committed to being part of the Portland Food Co-op because we want a more viable, equitable, and sustainable local food system. Our collective ownership and effort will keep it growing and thriving.

I will close by saying that being the General Manager of our Co-op continues to be the most rewarding position I have ever held in my professional career. I will continually be thankful for the founding Member-Owners who donated hundreds of hours of their time and talent to bring our cooperative into fruition and for everyone since then who has joined and contributed to our ongoing success.

In the words of Margaret Meade, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."

In Cooperation,
John Crane
General Manager