Medford Market Blog

As detailed in an email sent by the board last Wednesday, after the Medford Market Coop meeting in the Central Library last week, a local businessman approached the board with an offer of free or low-cost building space to use to help get the Medford Market off the ground. 

Last night about 40 owners of the Medford Market attended a meeting at the historic Cooley-Neff warehouse at 340 North Fir Street in downtown Medford to discuss that generous offer. One of the decisions reached last night was to schedule a regular monthly meeting of interested owners.  It was decided that the second Tuesday of each month, at 6:00 pm would be the best time.  So, the next meeting will take place on November 11th, again at the Cooley-Neff warehouse at 340 North Fir street.

Hopefully with a regular meeting time, more owners will be able to fit this into their schedules.  All topics will be open for discussion, but one of the main desires expressed by some attendees last night was to explore the idea of forming a buying club.  This club would allow members to begin function as a community co-op during the time we all continue the work to get the doors of a retail store open.  One of the attendees last night is currently a member of a buying club and agreed to bring information, catalogs, etc. to the November meeting.

Tuesday, November 11, 6:00pm at 340 North Fir Street.  Hope to see many of you there!

We are ready! Are you?

The Board of Directors of the Medford Market Food Cooperative are holding a meeting of the Food Co-op owners. Everyone who is interested in our future is invited to join us.
 
Monday, September 22, at 6:00 PM

Refreshments will be served starting at 5:30 PM

Medford Public Library
205 S. Central Ave, Medford
 

The agenda will include: Benefits of having a community-owned grocery store in Medford; proposed budget; and, potential sites for store locations.

For Further Information Contact:
John Statler at 541-770-5524 or John Miele at 541-664-5761
 

Because it was realized this was Labor Day Weekend, the potluck tentatively scheduled for this Saturday, the 30th has been postponed. We will post a notice here and mail out announcements once the new date for the potluck has been set. Have a great weekend!

There is also an upcoming Board of Directors meeting that is open to all owners. I will post the date and time for that when it is scheduled.

As we continue to watch the economic news and work towards opening the Medford Market, a question seems to keep coming up. What effect will this economy have on our efforts?

The effect of the economy on getting the doors open is the first part. of the question. I don’t have many ideas on that other than to remain optimistic and confident in the progress of the experienced, hardworking people in the ownership and board. The second part of the question is easier for me to comment on. If the economic trouble continues long term as some predict it might, what effect might that have on the Market once it is open for business?

When your income is being stretched as it has not been for some time, it is easy to be discouraged about where things are heading. I remain very optimistic, however, in the success of the store once it is open. I have seen many demographic facts and figures about how the demand for local and ethical food continues to grow. Even in this economy, many co-ops are very successful catering only to a small part of the local populace. The Medford area is quite large and I think a store like the Medford Market can be very successful without needing to attract a large percentage of local shoppers.

But what really gives me confidence in the store’s success once open, is the feedback I have heard from questions I have posted both in forums around the web and in articles I have written. All of my questions have been asked within the past several months, during a time when the "bad" economic news has been in every newspaper and on every news broadcast. It is also on everyone’s mind as they shop for food and fill their gas tanks.

My questions have all been similar to the following.. If you buy sustainable, organic, local, or ethical, (SOLE) products now, will you continue to do so even if the economy does not soon begin to improve? Is it important to you how food is produced and if yes, do you willingly pay higher prices for food you consider healthier or more sustainably produced? The questions have been varied, but the responses have almost uniformly been positive. Even when posting the questions on forums unrelated to food or health issues, there is a notable lack of antagonism towards the questions and the bigger issues involved.

As examples, here are some questions and the answers from polls I attached to a couple of articles I wrote.

Question:
Does it matter to you where you buy organic food?
Poll answers:
Yes, I would prefer to buy from a locally owned co-op or grocery. (71 votes)
No, my first priority is price, not where the food comes from. (8 votes)

Question:
Do you now, or have you ever shopped at a food co-op?
Poll answers:
Yes, I do now and I am a member. (6 votes)
Yes, I do now, but I am not a member. (12 votes)
Yes, not now, but in the past. (15 votes)
No, but I would if I lived near one. (35 votes)
No. I could, but I choose to shop elsewhere. (0 votes)

Now some may say these articles were being read, and the polls voted in, by the very "choir" some of us are at times accused of "preaching to".  Maybe the choir is targeted to some extent in these polls, but I suspect the reality is this…. The Medford area has a big enough population so that even if the vast majority of shoppers at the co-op are already members of the choir, that choir is large enough to support a thriving community store, a store that the rest of the community would then most likely welcome.

What do you think?  Do you have first-hand knowledge of how the current economic conditions are affecting existing co-ops?  Do you have a friend or relative that works in a co-op?  Maybe you do?  Leave a comment here and let us know your ideas and opinions.

The Medford Market is in the Mail Tribune today.  If you did not see the article, here is a link to the online version.  I have saved a copy of the text so if the link is eventually retired, I’ll ask the Tribune for permission to reprint it here.  All in all, it seems like decent write-up, although the online comments so far are negative.  What do you think of the article?  You can post your own comment online at the Tribune article and also let discuss the article in the comments section below.

There are also a couple of new links to co-op web sites in the sidebar for you to explore.  The Park Slope Food Co-op, a members only co-op is the oldest  food co-op in the country.  They even have the web domain name "foodcoop.com"!

The Flatbush Food Co-op is a special place to me even though I have never been to the store or lived in New York.  When I was in college and helping to start a buying club co-op, one of the other people involved was from Brooklyn and would become one of my best friends at school.  His parents were involved in the early days of the Flatbush Co-op, so we had lots of free advice that helped our little enterprise be successful.

Dear Medford Market Owners:

Thank you for your patience while we have continued the work to open the Medford Market.  We recognize it has been a long time since the Board communicated with all the owners.  It seems that every time a summary report was ready to be sent, changes in the Medford Market situation affected the report’s accuracy, and it was delayed.

Owners Pot-Luck Meeting
We are planning to hold regular owner pot-luck meetings to celebrate our common goals. The first pot-luck meeting is being planned for July or August and further information will be coming soon.   Keep a watch in your email and on the Medford Market Blog for further details. 

Market Board Still Active
The Board of the Medford Market Cooperative is still actively working toward our common goal of opening a co-op in Medford.  We have pursued many leads and possibilities and have been creating positive relationships with experts in the co-op world.  We have been refining our business model and pursuing both locations and financing solutions.  A particular site has not yet been identified, but several possible locations are being considered.  (The old hardware store is not one of the sites being considered.)  Several financing options are available, but exactly which type we use will depend on the final business model and choice of location.

Board member Louise Dix recently returned from a national food co-op meeting in Portland. She brings us renewed connections with folks who have knowledge of what we are doing and they want to help. She’ll be giving a report at the next pot-luck.

We do know that once a site and a financing plan are determined, we will be seeking new owners, asking existing owners to increase their shares, and will be re-instituting the owner-loan program that was so successful last year.

Report on Meeting of Volunteers
Several months ago we contacted folks who had offered to volunteer in any capacity. We then held a "joint committee" meeting to discuss our business model. Thirty-five of the 70 people we contacted attended that meeting and from that group, 12 people met again to review our previous business plans and marketing studies.  Several experts in various related fields have since come forward to help us take this project to the next level.  It is amazing the outpouring of support that has been offered since we asked the community for help.

Web Site Update
To make the Medford Market web site a more dynamic source of information, Cooperative owner Will Taft has agreed to help keep fresh content, of interest to coop owners, up on the new blog.  http://medfordmarket.org/blog.  This way, if you visit the web site and blog, you will see these updates and articles and know that we are still active and making progress.

Thank You
Thank you again for your patience as we all work together to achieve our common goal of getting the Medford Market opened for business!

John Statler, President
Medford Market Cooperative
541-770-5524
http://medfordmarket.org
 

To help the Medford Market’s blog fulfill its promise to be a source of information to co-op owners and the community, we have made a few design and content changes.  Feedback is always welcome, either by commenting on articles as they are posted or by using the "Contact" link at the top of the sidebar.  You might also want to read this short post to find out how to get registered and logged in to the blog.

In addition to occasional articles and other content of general co-op interest, the blog will be used for communication from the Board of Directors, for announcements of upcoming events, and to keep everyone informed of the progress being made in getting the co-op opened.  To that end, look for a letter tomorrow from the Board of Directors.

There are also a few links of interest on the sidebar, both to general information about co-ops and to the web sites of several successful co-ops. 

Be sure to bookmark this blog and to check back often for announcements and new content.

Special thanks to local TV station KDRV channel12 for putting their news piece on the web for us all to see. To go to their web page and view the short new piece on the December 3, 2007 meeting click on the image.

The following video is a fifteen minute summary of the owners meeting of the Medford Market Cooperative held on December 3, 2007. Special thanks to Megan Robinson for being our camera person.

For dialup Internet users a lower quality file is provided: Click here to download a 4 MB WMI file (approximate download time: 15 minutes) The notes of presentations given at that meeting can be found here. A report on the finances can be found here .

At the December 3, 2007 Medford Market Cooperative owners meeting several people requested a way to ask questions and receive answers on the web. This blog is a first attempt at meeting that request. Once you are registered for this site, you will be able to offer your own suggestions, comments and questions on any of the posts. So, click here to register, fill out the form, check your email, and follow the directions. You will then be able to log in and post comments. As categories and topics emerge we will create special posts reflecting those comments. Thank you.