Ashland Food Co-op

THRIVE Oregon

In 1972, a group of Ashland residents started a food-buying club, and in 1973 they opened a small storefront. At first the business sold only local produce from local gardens and small farms, bulk grains and beans, local duck eggs, local cheese, and local honey. The group's original intent was to provide fresh local whole, untainted foods.

The business, incorporated originally as a mutual benefit corporation in 1973, has grown steadily all these years. In 2002, the owners began the process of converting to a true cooperative corporation, and on January 1, 2003, opened their doors as a co-op. Today the co-op has more than 3,100 owners and 120 employees, and did $16 million in sales in 2005. “We’ve grown our business by offering the highest quality natural and organic food and the best customer service in southern Oregon,” says owner services manager Annie Hoy.

The co-op also considers itself the best employer in southern Oregon, and recently was selected as one of Oregon Business Magazine's 100 best companies to work for in Oregon. It pays a living wage and offers quarterly productivity bonuses, a profit-sharing bonus, a 401K retirement plan, and health benefits that include holistic care, vision, and dental. The co-op has a community grant program that gives out about $35,000 in grants per year. It also donates food to hundreds of events throughout the year. The building is energy efficient, the business recycles everything, and they used non-VOC paints and recycled lumber when they remodeled in 2002. The co-op encourages the use of recycled and cloth shopping bags. And the fact that they are consumer-owned versus a more conventional model makes their ownership a community-based alternative.

“Our greatest challenge is dealing with the growth we are experiencing,” Annie says. “We doubled our sales in four years and now are doing on a daily basis what we used to consider a great sales day before Thanksgiving!” With the opportunity to reach more and more people with their products and their mission, the Ashland Food Co-op is strategically planning to accommodate growth.