Honest
SLATE
Honest Weight Food Co-op’s Community Newsletter for Membership • Staff • Governance • Management Published monthly by the Communications Committee to promote transparency, report without bias, and sustain community.
january 2O21
Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Avenue, Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667
honestslate@honestweight.coop • https://www.honestweight.coop/
Take Ten! January Owner Incentive Tops Typical Savings brought to you by HWFC Marketing & Membership
Are you an Owner? If we told you
everything in the store was currently eligible for a special one-time-only discount, where would you start? How would you maximize your savings?
“We are working to do the best we can for our community,” added Member-Owner Coordinator (MOC) Yevette Buddeau. “We’re keeping it fun while encouraging customer loyalty. It’s a way of engaging Owners who ordinarily don’t expand their involvement [and] who might be one step away from being MOs.”
The Co-op has issued a special “one-time-only” Owner coupon for use any time during January.
What’s the deal?
Most of us are familiar with the term “Member-Owners” (MOs). But did you know that Honest Weight also has thousands of “regular” Owners? What’s the difference,* and why is HWFC issuing an Owner coupon this month?
Who qualifies? Owners | Member-Owners | Dual-status Staff
O
If you usually get:
2% off ......... 12% off
8% off ......... 18% off
24% off ......... 34% off
Why now? Marketing and Membership
cooked up this special to incentivize shopping and recognize Owners’ value to the HWFC community.
Didn’t get your paper coupon? Update your physical mail address with memberservices@honestweight.coop
“The Co-op’s customer count is down since COVID began,” Director of Marketing Alex Mytelka told Honest Slate. He revealed that our pre-COVID average weekly number of total transactions (commonly referred to as “customer count”) was about 13,000. Since April, it’s been trending at about 9,000—reflecting a substantial decrease.
Acknowledging that seasonal and current events shift shopping habits, Alex noted: “We’re missing folks for various reasons, but a good chunk of those…are Owners.”
*What’s the Difference? An Owner is anyone who buys an Ownership interest in HWFC and automatically receives a 2% shopping discount with no further obligation. Owners who want to become more involved can invest time at the store to become Member-Owners (MOs), earning a higher discount and the right to be involved in governing the Coop, including voting. All MOs are Owners, but not all Owners become MOs.
honestslate@honestweight.coop
then during one January trip, you’ll get:
)
Is this a first? HWFC once previously
offered events known as “Shareholder Saturdays,” which also allowed discount stacking and occasionally offered +10% coupons at Central Avenue. Then about four years ago, a 2%-only incentive was offered; so this type of event could repeat via our Marketing Department. In normal times, our Membership Committee sponsors multiple annual events such as ice cream get-togethers, BBQs, a free tie-dye tent, and raffles. Currently, the Committee has been making personalized phone calls to MOs as well.
Does this replace my usual discount? Not at all! With use of the coupon, this is a one-time extra 10% off on top of whatever your current monthly discount happens to be. Think of it as stacking up multiple layers of discounts. continued on page 2
CONTENTS Book Group Begins!................... 3 Murals Manifest........................ 4 Info & Help Sessions ................. 4 Food for Thought: Ginger.......... 5 Q&A............................................6 Meet Theresa Portelli................ 7 January Board Decisions............ 8 Committee Corner......................9 Co-Opportunities..................... 10 https://www.honestweight.coop/