By Leah Koenig

From extended entrance lines and plexiglass checkout stations, to paid staff temporarily replacing member work shifts, the Coop has seen its share of pandemic-induced changes. But one change that flies under the radar for some members is the herculean effort it takes to keep the shelves adequately stocked during these unprecedented times.

By Frank Haberle

In the relatively worry-free days of last September, longtime Brooklyn resident and Coop member Moussa Thiam struggled with a worrisome decision: should he abandon a successful but frenetic 25-year career as a Chef, or set aside his lifelong dream of building a successful film production company that created and promoted new films from Africa?

By Christopher Cox

The radical changes to the Coop during the pandemic have protected member-owners and workers alike, but they have been costly. According to General Coordinator Joe Holtz, in late March, when member labor requirement was suspended and shopping hours were restricted, the Coop was losing as much as $120,000 a week compared to the year before. That’s number is now approximately $95,000. In previous years, the Coop has run a modest weekly profit.

By Hayley Gorenberg 

Despite a huge spike in sales in the early days of the pandemic followed by a steep plunge, the Coop’s meat supply has been relatively stable amidst Covid-19, showcasing the resiliency of smaller, more responsible producers and processors. 

     The stability contrasts sharply with the major disruptions in the more industrial national meat supply chain as several consolidated factory meat processors shut down amid Covid-19 outbreaks among workers. 

By Rachel Blatt 

This time last year, Imani Larrier, a longtime Coop member and New York City teacher, was preparing to be an empty nester. “I was getting ready to send my youngest child off to college. I went through that whole emotional roller coaster.” Fast forward to this spring and Imani’s son was back home, attending his college classes remotely while she taught 4th graders from her kitchen.  

By Leila Darabi 

The Coop made history on the evening of May 26, convening the first virtual General Meeting of its membership. No voting took place during the meeting, which focused heavily on the financial blow the Coop has weathered over the past two months due to citywide Covid-19 safety restrictions. More than 750 participants joined the meeting, including the staff and board slated to speak.  

Board Convenes First Online GM

By Hayley Gorenberg

After pandemic precautions put in place this spring at the Coop, sales fell through the floor, with transactions dropping 79 percent and overall dollars spent down 37 percent for the week ending April 26. A typical week would have shown 17,000 transactions and perhaps $1.1 million total purchases—but only 3,436 took place, albeit at about triple the dollar-value per transaction.