Let's Start a Food Co-op! What Do We Do First?

Join Mary Stennes Wilbourn, FCI's outreach coordinator, and Kathy Nash of Prairie Food Co-op to learn how to move from kitchen table discusssion towards incorporating, growing membership, and fundraising for your own new retail food co-op.

[@CoolDisposition]

00:00 - Mary Wilbourn Introduction 00:35 - 79 of 140 Co-ops Opened 03:10 - Kathy Nash Introduction 04:10 - 3 Stages of Co-op Development 04:30 - Kitchen Table 05:32 - Waves of Expansion 06:25 - Stages can be Overwhelming 07:45 - Pay attention to who attends 08:35 - Find diverse members 09:08 - Vision is important 10:05 - Vague, Broad, Marketing Study 11:35 - Steering Committee 11:50 - Advocates assist with talking to community 13:20 - 4 Cornerstones in 3 Stages 16:00 - Co-op is Democracy in Action 17:30 - 7 Principles of a Cooperative 22:00 - Co-op Banking 23:05 - Concern for Community 24:45 - Farming Network 25:40 - Guidelines for Member-Owner fees. 26:30 - Size of Community for Memberships 28:28 - Cooperative Legal Counsel 30:00 - Share Vision. Same Answers 33:00 - Logo, Branding, Website (.coop not .com) 34:35 - Location and Number Accuracy 35:30 - FCI Timeline and changes 36:00 - Keep Activities and Content Current 39:40 - Stick to the 4 in 3 model... No shortcuts, only patience! 40:25 - Pitfalls (10 year period) 43:45 - Kathy on avoiding pitfalls and honesty 44:35 - False expectations 46:00 - Have Fun 47:55 - Capital Campaigns 49:20 - Closing and Advice

[@King-Bird-2TV]

Thank you for sharing.. I'm hoping soon I'll be in touch.

[@JamesSmith-cy5sx]

Thank you for sharing.. I'm hoping soon I'll be in touch.