The Greenbelt Cooperative Supermarket, familiarly and fondly known as the Co-op, held its annual meeting on Saturday, November 6 via Zoom. Nearly 60 members attended to hear about the store’s epic 2021. When all was said and done, Co-op had an excellent year and on the strength of it, Co-op members will receive a dividend voucher for about 1.2 percent of their Co-op spending over the last fiscal year. The Jim Cassels Award was also announced (see related story on page 6).
Solar High Spot
A saga of highs and lows appeared. The energizing of the solar array in February of this year was definitely a high spot – with it having already contributed approximately $40,000 in energy savings and accruing solar energy credits that can be sold for additional income. General Manager Dan Gillotte and Board Member Bill Jones both remarked that the new roof and array, paid for jointly by a Maryland state grant and contributions and loans from members, saved money in other ways too – with improved insulation and zero maintenance or damage from a roof that had previously leaked like a sieve.
Treasurer Joe Timer pointed out that utility costs were down by $25K as a result of the solar array. The board thanked Dorrie Bates, who coordinated the grant effort, and Steve Skolnik, who acted as project manager, for their successful and consistent help in bringing the project to completion.
Future Upgrades
Gillotte confirmed that a number of other infrastructure projects would be under contemplation in the next few years to maintain the building and save on operating costs – with the HVAC and refrigeration a prime target. Member Leta Mach urged the Co-op to try to negotiate the purchase of the building, though she conceded that the owners probably knew they were onto a good thing and probably didn’t want to sell. As noted in the past, although the Co-op pays rent for the building, they are also fully responsible for the upkeep of the structure.
Covid-19 Lows
The lows were provided by Covid-19’s effect on just about everything, which continues to affect store operations and costs. Gillotte noted that supply chain woes are worse now than what he called “the first hoarding phase.” He gave as an example, that, for an order to their supplier comprising perhaps 1,000 items, typically between 980 and 998 of the items would arrive, but now they are lucky to get between 600 and 700 items and perhaps not as many of each as required. Some products (he mentioned Silk brand seasonal eggnog, as an example) can’t even be made because the raw materials aren’t available.
Covid-19 challenges, however, have also resulted in initiatives that will hopefully turn out to be a plus in the long term. Co-op is increasingly sourcing from local producers to backstop some of their more distributed suppliers. They’ve found a local dairy, a local meat producer and they’re getting apples from Three Springs Farm (a Farmers Market vendor). They’ve also located a local baker of vegan cupcakes served in the Café (reporters note: very yummy!) and other goodies.
Kudos to Staff
Gillotte also referred with warmth and appreciation to his staff who, he said, had consistently risen to the occasion despite their own fears and concerns. In this year’s financial finale, the staff received $30,000 in bonuses with additional contributions to their retirement plans – the first of either in some years. In the first few months of the pandemic, staff were awarded raises that are now permanent. Staff, with humor and energy, have supported the initiatives that made it easier for shoppers to get curbside service and create the infrastructure for serving the New Deal Café. Initiatives in staffing included higher wages and the incentivization of vaccinations.
Shout-out to Shoppers
Gillotte was enthusiastic about Greenbelt and its community. He praised shoppers for their generosity, noting that over 6,000 bags of groceries had gone to the St. Hugh Food Pantry as a result of their joint program with Co-op. Jones echoed this praise, also thanking all those who had lent money or donated to help with the fund-raising effort for the roof and solar project. He noted that loan repayments for this year would be initiated soon. Mach reminded attendees that gifts to the St. Hugh’s pantry of Co-op gift cards served both the recipients and the Co-op. In-kind pantry food distributions include only non-perishable items. Gift cards enable recipients to purchase fresh foods and dairy products while increasing Co-op revenues. Cash donations that go directly to the St. Hugh’s pantry are also used by the pantry to purchase Co-op gift cards.
A Complicated Year
Timer, in his financial report, noted that the year had been complicated and that this was implicit (and perhaps hard to follow) in the financial statements – inflating total income. Timer presented a picture where large amounts of money came and went that were not directly related to the sale of groceries. Grant money for the solar array finally arrived and the infusion of cash from the forgiven Paycheck Protection Program loan also swelled income, although the basic operations of the store ran at a loss. The store’s balance sheet shows total assets of $2.54 million – over 10.3 percent higher than last year.
Pharmacy
Gillotte, in answer to a question, said that the pharmacy seemed to be holding its own after some difficult prior years, despite competition from the big chain pharmacy stores. He said the pharmacy was investigating possibilities for additional services with the potential to improve its financial position. The majority of the accounts receivable on the financial statement are anticipated payments from prescription insurance billings.
Dividends and Bonuses
Timer acknowledged that the dividend to members and the bonuses were really more a reflection of the forgiven PPP loan and the state grant than of grocery store performance per se. A member asked whether these payments were justified in view of the fact that this additional cash wasn’t going to continue. Timer said that the board felt that the infusion of cash had allowed it to significantly boost its reserves to a level that was safe and responsible and that though it might not happen again next year, a distribution of the surplus was justified. He noted that retained earnings had grown significantly – which is a measure of the store’s ability to absorb the ups and downs of business in the future. In answer to a question, Jones noted that members were perfectly welcome to donate their patronage refunds back to the store.
New Deal Relationship
The newly established relationship with their nearby sister cooperative, the New Deal Café, began only a week before the end of the fiscal year, so apart from startup costs, there was little effect on the financial position.
Gillotte was optimistic for the relationship, in which Co-op provides food and beverage services and the New Deal provides music and programming. He pointed out that Co-op did have the ability to terminate the relationship amicably should the venture not prove to be successful. He said that supply chain woes were also affecting the New Deal efforts, with cup lids, for example, currently unavailable.
Mutual Benefit
As Co-op ramps up operations at the New Deal Café, Gillotte expects a two-way payoff to gradually emerge – with the fully equipped commercial kitchen in the New Deal able to extend the Co-op’s offerings of prepared foods and carryout meals while the Co-op’s access to large scale purchasing of food and beverages keeps operating costs lower for the Café. He alluded to the high level of activity that had been required to set up operations – noting that even hiring staff had been tough in a competitive environment for food-service staff.
Incumbents Re-elected
In the final act of the meeting, Jones and Timer, the two incumbents whose terms on the board of directors had expired, were re-elected. The board thanked the third candidate, Terry Burchick, for running, saying how important it was that new people continue to put their energies into the organization. In saying this, the board also encouraged volunteers to join a new committee on volunteering by contacting info@greenbelt.coop.