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.
June 2O20 Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Avenue, Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667
honestslate@honestweight.coop • https://www.honestweight.coop/
The Reinvented Craftsman “Unrepentant Boomer” is how MO Jay
Schaffer tags himself on Instagram, but don’t let that fool you. He’s actually a rather friendly folk-blues guitarist, occasional activist, and—as of this month—a brand-new Honest Weight pottery vendor. Here’s how that happened. Browsing household items at the store recently, Jay noticed ceramics imported from overseas on our shelves. Thinking the Co-op should have more locally handcrafted products, he told Honest Slate: “It occurred in a flash—my stuff belongs there!” He immediately obtained contact information from the service desk and emailed photos to the Mercantile Department’s Emily Collins. Next, he upped his technological game. Self-described as social-media averse (“I have no PC or laptop, just a phone”), this old-school craftsman managed the online application process. Emily asked him what a fair wholesale figure would be; they quickly arrived at a feasible price point.
Supporting our rich membership skills base reflects the Co-op’s mission to sustain community. Now you can find Jay’s mugs on the endcap adjoining the spice and boxed tea aisle facing bulk coffee beans. If you are a Member-Owner with full discount, a handcrafted mug made by Jay will run you just over $12—plus, you’ll know the story for free. Jay first acquired pottery experience at SUNY Fredonia, where “I realized I had skills, signed up for [University of Albany] continuing studies, and fell in love with it.” He went from student to studio assistant, learning both mechanics and aesthetics.
honestslate@honestweight.coop
This lifelong Albany resident has shopped at HWFC “since brown rice was invented.” When after 40 years of loyal patronage Jay finally joined the Co-op earlier this year, he recalls that a Bulk Department associate told him “it’s about time!” “Customer service is my number one job.”
Not all glazes in the store are on donuts. All items are microwave/dishwasher safe, lead free, and ovenproof.
Now a weekly MO for the Grocery Department, Jay cites helping shoppers as a top priority of his time investment, noting that his department orientation stressed customer service as coming first. If you’re shopping on a Sunday afternoon and contemplating choices in the Center Store, you just might meet this versatile, reinvented craftsman. continued on page 2
Now retired from a corporate services and legal supplies company, Jay recently revitalized his business to focus on studio work. Having previously sold wares locally at the Daily Grind and Romeo’s Gifts (both on Lark Street) among other venues, Jay’s ceramics remain primarily functional: mugs, honey pots, and vases. Current products gravitate toward one of two main color schemes in blues and browns. Jay describes one style as a Jackson Pollock–like splatter (“like subatomic particles colliding”) while the other features a two-tone dip: a bicolor design with base and body in complementary hues reminiscent of vintage earthenware. “Every firing is an experiment. It’s magic.” Of his craft, Jay spoke of the perennial element of chance, expressing delight in the randomness of glazing. “It’s magic—you heat [the kiln] to 2200 degrees and hope it comes out all right!” While always striving for consistency, he points out that each product is unique.
If you are a local artisan interested in becoming an Honest Weight vendor, see our application online.
CONTENTS Step Into Service.................. 2, 12 Sandwich Service Returns!......... 2 Managing Meeting Methods..... 3 MOs Crucial to Store Success.... 4 Q&A............................................ 6 Food for Thought........................7 Committee Corner.................... 8 How Appreciation Looks........... 9 Board Decisions, Letters.......... 10 Meetings Virtually Rock........... 11 Co-Opportunities..................... 12 https://www.honestweight.coop/