A Working Model of Diversity and Inclusion for Food Cooperatives

1. A Working Model of Diversity and Inclusion for Food Cooperatives GreenStar Co-op has an ongoing organizational commitment to diversity & inclusion through programs designed to create access to natural foods for all, and foster and maintain community partnerships.

2. After 42 years we began to realize that some things just naturally changed on their own 2013 West End is going strong 1992 Our West End store front opens

3. And some things don’t 1973 2013

4. Perception is (almost) everything By 2009/2010 GreenStar Co-op was hearing negative community perceptions through community events, member forums etc. The perceptions boiled down to two basic points: 1. Our stores were viewed as inaccessible to those of low to medium income 2. We were seen as a primarily white affluent organization that practiced a sort of passive discrimination THEY WERE CORRECT!

5. We did something about it Rather than take our historically defensive positions of: • “You can make the Co-op affordable for youself if you try” • “Our doors are open to our entire community, it’s not our fault that some people feel uncomfortable shopping here” We addressed the concerns we heard in two distinct ways: • Food access: We created a BASICS (low-priced commodities) program as well as researched and instituted a low-income discount program (FLOWER) • Community Relations Building: We sought out community partners to help change the Co-op’s perspective on what it means to be a truly inclusive organization

6. Food Access • Food Justice: Food justice seeks to ensure that the benefits and risks of where, what, and how food is grown, produced, transported, distributed, accessed and eaten are shared fairly. Food justice represents a transformation of the current food system, including but not limited to eliminating disparities and inequities. • GreenStar approached its role in the food justice context on a couple fronts: • Creating a BASICS program which identified about 20 essential commodities in our stores and offered them for sale on an ongoing basis at a near-wholesale margin of about 20% • 2. Creating a low-income membership program entitled FLOWER ( Fresh Local Organic Within Everyone’s Reach ) that offers a 15% discount at our registers on all items excluding sale (Co-op Deal etc.) items • 3. Both of these programs augmented our pre-existing low-income equity installment payment and our 10% on the 10th sale to our membership

9. The Goal: A Program that Breaks Barriors & Makes a Real Difference! • 15% Discount • 1 YearFreeTrial Membership

10. Flower Qualifications • Current GreenStar Member • Receive benefits from one of: • Food Stamps • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families • Medicaid • WIC • Free School Lunch • Requalify on a yearly basis

11. What did we do? • First & Foremost: M&M Listserv!! • Board Approval

12. Risk Assessment for the Board • Estimated FLOWER Discount Outlay per Food Stamps Tender Totals for 2009: FS Sales13% Discount $326,955 $42,504 • Current member-owners accounted for 69% of Food Stamp sales: 31% = new member-owner opportunity • 12% of Food Stamp sales were by Seniors/Diff- Abled already receiving a 7.5% discount • A hefty dose of faith!!

13. What did we do? • First & Foremost: M&M Listserv!! • Board Approval • Contacted Human Service Agencies • Developed Materials & Database

15. What did we do? • First & Foremost: M&M Listserv!! • Board Approval • Contacted Human Service Agencies • Developed Materials & Database • In-Store Marketing • Community Tabling, PTA Meetings

17. What the Community Did to Spread the Word • Farmers Market Food Stamp Program • The WIC Connection • Senior Center Postering • Low Income Market Basket Program • Elementary School Bags • International & Local News Articles

18. Flower Process • Application • Appropriate qualifying document Food Stamps Card vs Budget Sheet??? • Copy of Photo ID • We call upon approval & send letter • Send Reapplication reminder letter 30 to 45 days prior to expiration

19. FlowerMetrics • 399 Current Participants 4.5% of Total Membership [>8,700] • 644 Participants since inception Pre-existing Members 52% New Members 40% Expired Memberships 9% • Qualifying Program Breakdown Food Stamps/TANF 65% Free School Lunch 9% Medicaid 11% WIC 15%

20. FlowerMetrics Program Growth Over Time • New Member Retention: • 54% [137] of New Members are still in the FLOWER program • 34% [87] are no longer GreenStar Member-owners • 12% [31] are still Member-owners, but are no longer FLOWER participants

21. FLOWER Financial Analysis Cost of the Program # of Donated Members Discounts Equity Total 4Q 2010 97 $3,857 $72 $3,929 CY 2011 358 $56,730 $440 $57,170 CY 2012 396 $77,812 $360 $78,172

22. FLOWER Financial Analysis Greater Co-op participation by low income members “Organic food should be affordable for everyone and the FLOWER program makes that ideal real for many working families” 1. An increase in total dollars spent by FLOWER members FLOWER % 0f % Increase SalesStore Salesvs Prior Yr 4Q 2010 $49,065 CY 2011 $487,371 3.2% CY 2012 $668,479 3.9% 37%

23. FLOWER Financial Analysis Greater Co-op participation by low income members “FLOWER has helped me stretch my Food Stamp dollars” 2. A significant increase in Food Stamps dollars spent at the Co-op % Increase Food Stampsover prior year 2010 $376,701 2011 $457,489 21% 2012 $515,273 13%

24. FLOWER Financial Analysis The program is growing beyond Food Stamps "I'm super-enthusiastic about the program. It makes GreenStar one of the big stops when I come into town.  I can't buy things at most stores. Unlike other stores, I'm now able to get local and organic food without it being prohibitively expensive." Food Stamp FLOWER % SalesSales*Difference CY 2011 $457,489 $487,371 6.5% CY 2012 $515,273 $668,479 29.7% * Includes Food Stamp Sales by FLOWER members

25. FLOWER Financial Analysis Increased Co-op loyalty amongst pre-existing members! “FLOWER has made it possible for my family to buy all its food at GreenStar” Analysis of 193 pre-existing members who have been on FLOWER for at least 1 year: Total Sales for 1st Yr on FLOWER: $512,000 Increase in Total Sales vs. prior year: $55,158 Additional savings [13% discount]: $43,114

26. Tips for a Successful Low Income Discount Program • Develop good connections with Social Services • Be clear on: • The qualifying programs • The qualifying documents • Engage Front End Staff early on • Make the application process easy • Personally contact each member upon approval • Think through what you need for on-going financial assessment before launching program • General community outreach

27. Building Community Relationships That Last

28. Community Relationships:What GreenStar Did 1. We reached out to community organizations and people identified as “critics” and asked if they would be willing to meet with members of our Management team and Board to discuss the Co-op’s perception and help work with us to change it. • We asked directors of community centers, leaders of multi-cultural organizations, and those that have been critical of our inclusivity efforts in the past to join us at an offsite meeting space for an initial 2-hour meeting • We asked for feedback and then LISTENEDand LEARNED What Happened? • We received honest input regarding GreenStar that was at times VERY hard to hear • We worked through the initial tough discussions to get to a point where we could ask ourselves and our partners “how can we change?” • We started small: reviewing/revising our personnel paperwork, sharing job postings with community organizations, mentoring new hires, and met with this community group quarterly to review our work and put more on our plate

29. Community Relationships:WhatGreenStarDid 2. This group of community members and GreenStar staff drafted a statement of diversity and inclusion: GreenStar Co-op is committed to being an inclusive organization free from discrimination. We seek out and welcome people from diverse communities to participate in a community-owned cooperative business structure. • This statement appears prominently on ALL our materials: job postings application/descriptions, newsletter, FLOWER application, website etc. • The community group then reviewed our HR materials to collaborate on revising them in the context of inclusion: Interview questions, job description language etc. We learned so much from this experience about what we were not doing. • We then partnered with a community leader who was committed to sending applicants to our HR department as we sent them job descriptions. • We ensured that our management team’s focus was on hiring for diversity and we said what that meant. • This is important. Over time the area where your co-op may have a deficit may change. In GreenStar’s case our outstanding deficit was employing and maintaining staff of color. • We made sure that staff and our membership heard our commitment loud and clear: - presentations to membership - staff training opportunities - hired authors for Co-op newsletter articles - website / social media postings

30. Revised Job Application

31. Hiring local authors for articles focused on community events

32. Our tax-exempt affiliate is committed to food justice and sustainability in our county. In 2013 we will host the 3rd annual food justice summit in Ithaca as well as Networking Meetings bringing stakeholders in our food system together to coordinate and brainstorm solutions to the issues we face.

33. Using local services such as the Human Services Coalition to ensure that staff have the opportunity for ongoing training

34. Both of our Food Access and Diversity initiatives involved taking relationship and financial risks

35. Risk Taking: Relationships • Make no mistake: hearing and understanding years of negative perceptions is HARD • The Co-op had to do the work of reaching out and making these meetings happen. Sincerity and persistence pay off • Listening to ongoing criticism and being willing to invest in sincerely changing your HR/personnel approach as well as marketing materials is key

36. Financial Impact of these Programs • Double digit sales growth for 3 years • Increase in discount expense translates to a slightly lower profit margin • This was balanced with a decrease in advertising expense and increase in community investment expense • Net profit seems to be virtually unaffected by this approach while the community’s perception of the Co-op has improved dramatically : invaluable !!!

37. Looking Back: Have Things Changed? • Have we increased access to high-quality food for moderate and low income individuals and families? • 2. Have we improved our cultural competency and become a more inclusive organization in our community? • Yes, and the work must be ongoing

38. Community Relationships:The Outcomes After this concerted effort, our staff of over 200 diversified quickly As a result: • Community members who traditionally shied away from the Co-op started shopping with us because they began to see “people that look like me” and thus found it a much more comfortable place to shop • Staff diversity help perpetuate itself as positive word of mouth circulated throughout our community that the Co-op was a positive place to work • Co-op sales have grown at a rapid rate of over 10% for nearly 3 years, much of this is related to our community building and food access work • In 2013 we inverted our advertising budget with our outreach and donations budget to ensure that we increased our investment in community events, sponsorship and outreach

39. Community Relationships:The Outcomes • We continue to meet quarterly with our community partners • We emphasize staff training and participation in Diversity-oriented workshops and events • We host internal training activities such as a viewing of the PBS 3-part series Race: The Power of an Illusion • Member volunteers at community festivals • Outreach! Donate! Sponsor! The best kind of advertising there is

40. Community Relationships:The Outcomes • In 2013 GreenStar is poised to co-host and/or support several major community events at community centers throughout the city. This would have not occurred 5 years ago • Staff identifying themselves as non-white in 2010: 3.6% out of 193 staff persons • Staff identifying themselves as non-white in 2012: 12% of 222 staff persons • Ithaca, NY demographics: 74% white 26% non-white • It is crucial that we continue to emphasize our commitment and do the work that it requires. There is no end to the process of becoming a culturally competent and inclusive organization.

41. THANK YOU!