Metaphorical Sailing or Selling?
by Brad Salmon
For no apparent reason, as I write today I find myself using sailing metaphor so please bear with me, I do eat a fair amount of seaweed and perhaps it is having an effect. My task since arriving at the co-op has been to try to plug the leaks in our hull so that we may continue upon the journey that the co-op founders dreamed of. I find that our current sea worthiness is dependent upon a number of patches but at the moment we are no longer taking on water. Having our heads at the waterline we now can see distant shores and are turning the vessel toward them. But we need you to travel along with us. The co-op needs to increase our sales volume by $6,000 per week over the next few months. Based on our current trends this equates to each current customer spending $2.85 more per shopping trip or by us finding 273 new customers per week, each making typical purchase amounts. Ideally we will do both!
During the past 12 months our records indicate that 343 members have abandoned ship by not making any purchases in the store. For whatever reason these 343 people were at one time interested enough in the co-operative business model to have joined the co-op but have since stopped shopping here. Some will have moved away but others have become disillusioned and now shop elsewhere. We need them back! During the initial voyage we capsized a number of times as we did not always know how to reef the mainsail during high winds, and our charts did not always show the way to steer clear of the reef. We have a new keel, new charts upon which to depend and we have learned to sail perpendicular to the wind.
I am the captain and it is my job to help steer this ship back on course toward its’ initial destination. I will be sending a letter to those members asking them to come and give us another chance. The staff and I will continue to do our best to offer high quality local & regional products with an emphasis on supporting vendors whose business models adhere to good stewardship & sustainability practices – at the fairest prices that we can offer. Simply stated, good food at fair prices, from good people, close to home. During the journey we have done a good job of sourcing high quality products but we have not yet made enough progress on the fair pricing aspect. Our limited purchasing power combined with high overhead makes it challenging to compete with big box retailers on the pricing spectrum. We are looking for ways to try and offer better value and toward that end we are introducing a Member Rewards program which will offer well over 100 quality everyday items at everyday low prices to our member-owners. The signs are already appearing in the store so look for the cream colored signs with green borders. The next 12-18 months represent a critical period in the co-op’s evolution and we really need your continued support. Please help me to spread the word to our former shipmates!
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Dear Patronage,
Our store is in the beginning stages of playing on a bigger field. We are broadening our horizons and looking at new opportunities to become a more efficient endeavor. We have limited ourselves by trying to define our image as a specialty store. We are moving forward towards a more inclusive model. We want to see new faces in the co-op and we are trying to appeal to a larger audience. In this attempt we anticipate some changes.
In the past, the co-op has tried to speak to fringe ideas relative to food and lifestyles. We have tunneled ourselves into a small populace and have bred a culture of exclusion. We plan to move towards inclusion. Our core values will always remain the same. We are dedicated to quality food systems and offering our customers the highest quality product at the lowest possible cost.
We want to offer products that support every shopper. We want to represent all necessary items in the best possible manner. In the past we have gone above and beyond to cater to a selective need and have neglected the rest. We want to focus on products that are used on a daily basis rather than products that people come here every few months for. This notion has led us to start our member rewards program. The idea behind the program is to encourage membership by offering basic items at competitive prices. We have started the program with 32 items and plan to expand it to 100. The items are represented by white tags with green borders that say “member rewards”. Come in to find out what we are doing to appeal to a larger audience.
Yours cooperatively,
Kyle
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Placerville Food Co-op is hiring!
Call or email the appropriate department manager if you're interested in applying for a position. Download an Employment Application and bring it in at your earliest convenience. Call for more information (530) 621-3663
GROCERY BUYER
We are looking for a Grocery Buyer. Please contact Kyle at kyle@placervillecoop.org
CASHIER
We are currently accepting applications for part-time cashiers starting immediately. Please contact Lorna lorna@placervillecoop.org
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Greetings from the deli!
There have been many changes in the bakery. We now have a second baker, Rachel. This talented addition to the kitchen will ensure that we will have a fully stocked bakery case 7 days a week. We are looking forward to expanding. We are introducing new baked items, such as cheesecake, and experimenting with dairy-free and gluten-free options as well. We now have more variety of muffins so you’ll other options than just gluten-free. Also, we are able to bake custom-order cakes: feel free to call or come in and ask any questions you may have about them.
Thank you,
Your friendly Deli Team
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