As some of you might remember, especially if you attended last year’s Annual Meeting or read the 2019 Annual Report, we announced changes to membership dues and discounts. The Board approved a motion to change the annual dues to $0 and General Manager Andy agreed to eliminate the 2% discount level. Starting Tuesday, February 9th the renewing member-owners will not be charged dues, and non-working owners will not receive the 2% discount.

How Does This Affect Me?

No change will be made to your account until it is time to renew your membership. If you’re a non-working owner you will then no longer receive a 2% base discount. If you have recently renewed, you’ll continue to receive your discount until the full year is up, thus getting the value for the dues you paid. You’ll only pay $10 per year towards your $100 share, if you’ve already paid your full $100 share renewal will come at no cost!

Why The Changes To Membership Dues?

Our justification for these changes is that the annual dues are a barrier to becoming a member, and the 2% discount is not sufficient to convince most people to join the Co-op. In practice, the dues and 2% discount essentially cancel each other out when we consider the last several years. Eliminating dues is a measure that many co-ops have taken. We hope this change will lead to an increase in membership.

Without A Non-Working 2% Discount, What Are The Tangible Benefits Of Member-Ownership?

We have added value to Member-Ownership by adding a few new benefits:

• All monthly promotional sales apply to members only.
• Members can benefit from our Buying Club that has been expanded to now give access to four great vendors. It now offers special pricing from Equal Exchange and Frontier Co-op to go along with UNFI and Regional Access. More information to come on that, including an instructional video on how to use the online Buying Club and how to maximize its value.
• Soon we will introduce some loyalty programs including electronic punch cards and rewards!
• We are in the progress of restoring and revitalizing our Business Partner Program. Co-op members will be able to take advantage of coupons offered by other businesses in our area.
• As always, all Member-Owners have the opportunity to work for a discount. You can earn a 10% discount by working an hour per month per adult in your household or you can get 20% for working 3 hours every week! We’re currently looking for people to help us in our packaging room and the Carriage House, and to write and submit blog articles for our website.