November GM Report
by Kenna S. Eaton
Each month, I report to the board on what is happening in the store as well as our progress on our long-term goals, which we call our Ends. These Ends reflect our aspirations—what we want to accomplish—and they are part of what makes us different from a regular grocery store. We publish these reports as a blog to keep our member-owners up to date on what we are doing.
Our Ends
The general manager strives to provide these benefits to our member-owners and community while operating a strong grocery store:
Strengthen and advocate for our local food system, with a vibrant culture of appreciation and support for local farms and producers.
Treat people well, increasing equity and access by providing a safe, welcoming, and educational environment.
Treat the planet well, by modeling environmental stewardship and regularly sharing our accomplishments and challenges with member-owners.
November Update on Store and Progress on Ends
Working Together to Nourish our Community
Store Update
The center of the store re-set is done—well mostly. And I for one am over the moon with the results! I love how products are now in more intuitive and sensible locations and related items have been brought closer together. There are a few tweaks that we’ll be making to complete the task, but no more major changes are planned. Many thanks to the team who completed this massive task in only two (long) nights, to the staff who supported them, and to our shoppers who took this all in stride!
Our new deli case is still underperforming, but we’re hopeful that we’ve tracked down the root of the problem and it will soon be up and functioning properly—that or we’ll be replacing it!
We celebrated Co-op Month with some special member coupons with a Member Only deal each week. We also brought in some new Co-op branded t-shirts and sweatshirts.
Ends Update
Local
We are proud to announce that we have raised $83,844 for the Farmer Fund Grants. Applications are now open for producers and farms to apply, and we also opened our annual Beans for Bags nominations online for 2026.
Local Goods, from Orcas Island, has expanded their product line to include teas. We have brought in four flavors, and the staff favorite so far is Fisherman’s Foggy Morning, a black tea blend with local nettles.
We are beginning the fall holidays with another seasonal staff favorite, pumpkin spice eggnog from Grace Harbor Farms (in Lynden, WA), which is also available in a new 16-ounce size.
Customers enjoyed an apple tasting event with Luke Tonnemaker in October. We currently have 21 varieties of apples and 4 varieties of pears grown by Tonnemaker Hill Farm (in Royal City, WA), which are delivered weekly.
We also celebrated local with our annual SaSQUASH Fest with 20% off ALL Local Winter Squash from Midori, Dharma, and Red Dog Farms.
People
This month we conducted interviews for a newly created position, Director of Training and Development. This position will be responsible for the strategic planning, development, and implementation of all employee training programs, including DEI. Our goal is to foster a culture of continuous learning to enhance our skills, knowledge, and performance, and to align our learning initiatives with our goals as a cooperative grocery business. We’re excited by the thought of finding the right person to lead this effort and we’ll announce who has been hired as soon as we can.
Additional key staff changes include the departure of James R. as grocery manager, a role which Julie S. (previously an Assistant Team Leader) will take on. Welcome Julie!
At the end of October, two of our staff groups, LGBTQIA+ and Workplace Engagement, teamed up to host a “Spooky Pride Halloweenie Event,” which involved costumes, a roasted weenie lunch, and games in the courtyard.
Our youth-program employees have completed their first three months on the Grocery Team. This training program gives high school students an opportunity to work 3-month stints in four departments in the Co-op. They are currently working for the Front End Team as baggers, carrying out customer groceries, and generally helping. It’s great to have them on hand to help during our busy holiday season.
Safety Procedures Update: Staff received training on how to use our new reporting tool for minor safety incidents. However, we’re still waiting for feedback from Labor and Industries on our revised safety trainings before we implement it
Planet
After replacing the entire water main from the connection at Kearney Street to the store, we had high hopes we had fixed our water main issues. Sadly, another leak has since appeared, this time located close to the store. The plumbers returned and quickly repaired the leak, although the store did open 30 minutes late that day. My fingers remain crossed that this repair holds….
Yours in community,
Kenna
