Hello friends,
I would like to post the letter from the BriarPatch Co-op General Manager, Paul Harton that was sent out to owner-members by mail in early March 2008. While I may not agree with his views entirely, I believe the letter expresses a desire to pull together as a community. It also clearly states a response by management to some of the ideas and opinions posted at friendsofbriarpatch.blog.com.
Paul Harton does not philosophically believe blogs are the best format for communication, but has given me permission to post the letter on my own behalf. Lets keep the spirit of willingness to listen and learn from others alive.
Kim Koons



February 29, 2008

Dear BriarPatch Owner-member,
Lately a lot of people have been asking me how BriarPatch is doing in our new store, and I’d like to give you, our owner-members, an update.

There’s a lot of great news:
• In the nine months since moving, we’ve heard an outpouring of enthusiasm for the new store, especially for our two new departments, the deli and Meat/Poultry/Seafood Department.
• Since the new store opening we’ve welcomed 1,000 new and renewing owner-member households — growing from 2,500 to 3,500 active owner-member households.
• Our sales have doubled from those in the old store. More people buying more organic and natural foods means less chemical pesticides used, which is better for people, animals, and the environment.
• We received the Grass Valley/Nevada County Chamber of Commerce 2007 Business of the Year Award.
• In our new store we employ twice the number of people with jobs that provide fair wages, health insurance, a generous vacation and sick leave program, discounts on purchases, options for dental and vision insurance, and more.
• We’ve provided, with our Community Room, a very low-cost meeting and class space for over 25 different local organizations, including ten groups that hold their regular monthly meetings here.
• We recently donated a $750 prize we received from the National Cooperative Grocers Association, for coupon redemption, to the Food Bank of Nevada County, and will be donating a $250 prize to Interfaith Food Ministry.
• We’re working with the local chapter of the California Native Plant Society to establish a native plant demonstration garden in and around our stormwater retention basin. Planting has begun, and work will continue through the winter and spring.
• We’re awaiting — and fully expected to receive —U.S. Green Building Council LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building certification.

As you can see, our new store has already had some great results for our owner-members and for the entire community.


Financial Situation
How is the store doing financially so far? Pretty much as we expected and budgeted for. The cost of the new store/expansion was incredibly close to the original forecast by our cooperative consultants, only 1.75% over budget. This result is excellent, and somewhat unheard of in construction. It can be attributed to the professionalism of our contractor, Tru-Line Builders, architect Jeff Gold, and the good communication we established with these local professionals.
Also as projected and planned for by our Board and management, we operated at a loss for 2007, which is commonplace for a business opening a new store, paying for the expansion, and growing its customer base all at the same time. Our sales so far are 20% higher than our original projections — good news. Our expenses are also higher than expected, however; in particular our costs for utilities and upkeep, employee health insurance, and employee discounts. To reach profitability, we are working to cut expenses and increase sales. We’ve increased the efficiency and profitability of our meat and deli departments, are refining staff needs, and expanding our catering. We need to increase our sales by just 4% to be cash positive. The management is very focused on financial conditions, and we expect to see a transition to a positive cash flow this spring.
You can help in at least two ways:
1. Shop at BriarPatch a bit more. If each of us buys just a few more groceries here each week, it will make a big difference.
2. Tell your friends about BriarPatch, or even better, bring them in for lunch or dinner and introduce them to the store. We are offering a great new incentive for people to join the co-op: new members receive our 2008 “New Member Savings” coupons for 14 different FREE natural and organic products, worth a total of up to $50. If you’re with your friend when they join, you also get a coupon savings book. There’s no limit to the number of free items you can get while coupon books last.
I’d also like to take this opportunity to address some concerns that have been raised.

Adjusting to Change
Our new expanded store is, needless to say, very different from the old store. It’s not as easy for employees to get to know all of their co-workers, let alone the many new shoppers attracted to this spacious, beautiful store. Some feel nostalgic for the old store, despite the space restrictions we experienced there. This is understandable. I ask everyone to move forward with BriarPatch and to bring their good energy to making this bigger store a better store.

Prices
We want you to know that BriarPatch did not change our pricing structure when we moved to the new store. Any price increases that have been made are due to higher costs from our suppliers. There are various reasons for increases, but a major one is the higher price of gas. Our pricing is very straightforward, based on our product costs. In the surveys we’ve taken, we find that BriarPatch’s prices are lower overall than nearly all of the other local grocery stores surveyed, for the same products.
It’s true that our newer, larger space allows us to carry more products that customers have requested and some of these are “gourmet” and more expensive. At the same time, we have instituted a Basic Buy Program and will continue to refine it to make BriarPatch affordable to all members of the community. We invite you to pick up a copy of our new handout on “8 Ways to Save at BriarPatch” the next time you’re in the store (or see these tips at www.briarpatch.coop).


Financial Information
Our cooperative business is open in conveying financial information to the Board of Directors and to our owner-members, in ways that would not be allowed in any other private business. BriarPatch’s finances are, and have been for many years, reviewed monthly by a Finance Committee consisting of managers and Board representatives. A finance report is on the agenda at monthly Board meetings. Finance statements are included in our newsletter. Additional financial information may be inspected by Board Directors upon request, and Directors have been given all the financial information they’ve requested to date. For privacy and security reasons, personnel and owner-member personal information (such as social security numbers, addresses, and phone numbers), is obviously kept secure, which means that Directors and others are given printed financial data rather than unlimited on-line access. Any other policy would create legal liability. There has never been a case of any financial records being withheld from any of the Directors, owner-members, or staff. If anything, through the openness of our policies we run the risk of providing access to our finances to our competitors, or data to those who would misinterpret or misstate it.
In fall of 2007, shortly after the new store’s opening, BriarPatch’s Board passed a resolution to conduct a financial audit for 2009, with an option to audit 2008 if the funds were available. This was a purely economic decision, based on the availability of funds and the priority of meeting the financial needs of the new business, including staff wage concerns. In November 2007 the Board adopted a proposed audit of the 2008 financial records to allay concerns that an audit was being postponed or denied. This was never the case, the original schedule was a product of economics and priorities.
I can assure you that in the last 18 months, thanks to the diligent work of our Finance Department staff, headed up by Finance Director Mark Warner, CPA, we have implemented modern financial systems that are appropriate for a business of our size. We have an excellent Finance Department team of four, and I have the greatest respect for the integrity of each of these hard-working employees.

Employee Satisfaction
To assess overall job satisfaction at BriarPatch, a survey was taken in January and February by Carolee Coulter, an independent consultant who came highly recommended from other co-op grocers across the country. The results of the survey, just received, showed that employee satisfaction at BriarPatch is quite high. Survey results will be published in the next newsletter and will be available to all our staff. While we are very pleased with the level of satisfaction, we will use this information to work toward even greater employee satisfaction in future years.
A Board Compensation Committee recently compared BriarPatch workers’ wages with wages at comparable jobs in our community, and with other West Coast co-ops. The committee found that BriarPatch’s wages in non-management jobs were quite competitive. On the other hand, we are a bit below when comparing managers’ wages, and we thank our hard working managers for their understanding and dedication to BriarPatch. In addition to wages, we offer a generous package of benefits, including health, dental, and vision insurance, employee discounts, paid time off and sick leave, IRA, massages, and chiropractic care.
Our Personnel Policy was updated last year, including the policy regarding termination, and it is followed carefully; employees are terminated for either misconduct or well documented work performance problems. A recent newspaper “Other Voices” letter implied that 17 workers left their jobs here in a single month. Unfortunately, the writer left out the fact that almost all of these employees left for personal plans such as returning to school, or they were experienced workers who were on a temporary basis from the start.
Our Human Resources Manager, Heather Wright, would be happy share more detailed information with owner-members.

Owner-member Participation
Your involvement in BriarPatch is important. You can be more involved in these ways:
• Shop and eat at BriarPatch (even more!).
• Bring friends here, and tell them what you love about BriarPatch.
• Give us suggestions on how we can better serve you; our suggestion box and forms are at the Customer Service window.
• Keep informed: 1. Read our newsletter and biweekly email messages (join the email list at the Customer Service window). 2. Check out our front bulletin board when you’re in the store. 3. Attend Board meetings.
• Vote in Board of Directors and other decision-making elections, or run for the Board.
• Volunteer in the store.

I believe we are all proud of this co-op, and thank you for being part of it. I like to think of this new store as a garden. We’ve worked hard to dig the garden bed, prepare the soil, and plant the seeds. We’re now ready to grow, blossom, and bear fruit. Please keep your sun shining on us, and the results will be bountiful for many seasons to come.
If you have any questions about BriarPatch operations, please feel free to call me at 272-1549 or send me an e-mail at paul@briarpatch.coop.

Sincerely,
Paul Harton
General Manager


P.S. Elections for five seats on our Board of Directors will be held from May 1 to May 15 this year. This is an important election, as the Board will be steering our co-op into the future. Please join us to come meet the candidates at our Candidate Forums in our Community Room on Wednesday, April 9 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, April 19 at 11:00 a.m. And please exercise your right to vote between May 1 and May 15, 2008.

Where have all our buddies gone?

Where have all our buddies gone?
Many people discuss the issues of financial stability of the Briarpatch: will it outlive the doom of impending national economic disaster, can it pay off its huge debt, etc.? Perhaps the deeper core issue the loss of many of the old customer base that sustained the Briarpatch’s success for 34 years. No one expected a mass exodus of the regular folks previously considered the mainstays of our favorite local co-op. The anticipation of plenty of parking, wider aisles and more stuff to buy was positive and high, the opening party in June looked like an indication of success and so many people praised the benefits of a new deli. What happened? Why are owner-members, even a few Briarpatch founders, shopping at the Sierra College Drive store less or not at all?
When I ask friends what keeps them away from the new green organic paradise, answers fall into specific categories:
- The prices are too high
- Authoritarian management practices as well as a resentment of that misplaced guy from Safeway, of all places.
- Too many of our staff friends have been fired and we hear many stories of harassment by management.The new store location is too far away now .A sense that we don’t belong there anymore.
- Theories of “ethnic purging”, yuppification, the image is too corporate, the social experience of shopping at the Briarpatch has disappeared.
- Theories of corporate takeovers including rumors of Whole Foods buying us out soon
- Just plain dissatisfaction with the newness of it all. Remember those wonderful aromas of those smaller health food stores, many of which are still functioning: Corners of the Mouth in Mendocino, Tahoe Natural Foods at the Y, Natural Selections and even the Joerschke store?
- Too much stuff from China, GMO’s, water from Finland. A few members are offended by the fancier products on the shelves.

I still buy groceries at the Briarpatch. I like the new ambiance. The river running along the concrete floor is pleasant and I enjoy the larger selection of goodies. But, I shop at the BP less often because of the lack of cooperative management practices. I feel sad that Anje and Scot no longer brighten up the day with a hug or a howdy and I resent the physical assault by a manager upon an existing employee. I feel uncomfortable with the fact that he still works there knowing that, if the tables were turned, a physically violent employee would have been fired on the spot. But, I hope that my work with the Friends will bring about a change of this dictatorial style of management.
The Briarpatch is a cooperative and a democratic opportunity unlike privately owned establishments. However, few owner members vote during Board of Directors Elections. Out of over 3000 member households,generally only 160 vote each election. Those statistics are sad,indeed. If you are feeling dissatisfaction with the way things aregoing, you can change the constituents of the Board of Directors to a more owner-friendly group this May. Democracy is a participatory institution and I urge you to research the issues and ABOVE ALL, VOTE!!!
Also, we do need the Briarpatch to survive financially while we work out the kinks. I urge you to continue to shop there and to voice your praises and your concerns loudly. Also, though board meetings can be frustrating due to the lack of cross-talk, you can still exercise your cooperative democratic freedoms by speaking out at the Public Comment times. And, we are more likely to see changes become realities if we ARE the change rather than if we abandon the ship.
I have done a survey of the price issue by skulking around all 4 healthfood stores and the SPD to see if the perception of higher costing goods at the Briarpatch is accurate. Sometimes, bright and shiny stores convey a sense of expensiveness rather than the actuality of higher prices. Below, you will see that, in general, NaturalSelections wins the prize for lower prices, but not always. For those of you who feel that shopping at Grocery Outlet gives you huge savings, please check out the origins of their produce, the freshness dates of pre-packaged foods and even their management practices. Certainly, the owner of California Organics has a reputation of archaic management practices and pays employees very low wages with no question of definitely firing them “at will”.
I hope this article stimulates much discussion. I am positive we can find solutions to the above problems as the democratic cooperative that we are.
Cecilie Hooper

All products are organic except Way Yum Sushi.

L/G Brown Rice Bulk Walnuts Way Yum Sushi Smith Cabernet
BPatch $1.34/lb $10.05/lb $5.75/5 oz. any type $15.39
Cal Org $1.59/lb $--- $ ---- $13.99
SPD $--- ----- $5 / 5 oz. any type $14.99
Nat. Vly $1.34 $10.38 $5 / 5 oz, any type -------
Nat. Sel $1.29 $9.45 $5 non-fish, $12.55 $5.50 w/ fish

Green Forest T/P Tomatoes Bananas
BP $1.49 on sale $2.79 / lb $.99C/Org $ ----- $1.89 $.89
SPD $1.79 not on sale $3.39 $.99
Nat Va $ --- $3.21 $.99
Nat Sel $1.69 “ $2.45 $1.05

Suggestions for Making the BriarPatch more Profitable

A really good idea could begin right here in this blog. Really good ideas always begin as something silly and out of touch because they break the pattern. They often come from a voice that is usually silent in an environment of listening and respect. Then another voice will build on that idea, and then another, each making it larger and wiser. Do your part and speak your thoughts and contribute to other thoughts and really great ideas will move into reality.

You are invited to come to Google Groups, give your ideas and comment on others!
http://groups.google.com/group/friendsofbriarpatch

Why am I a BriarPatch Co-op Member?, and what is my vision for the co-op?

I hope every person reading this blog will write a comment. Without including everyone's vision the Briarpatch is only a store yet by including all of you it will become a truly great place where we can learn and grow and find community and that's what it's really all about.

You are invited to come to Google Groups, give your ideas and comment on others! http://groups.google.com/group/friendsofbriarpatch