SHOPPING FOR SHARES. Just Local Food Cooperative is now allowing consumers to buy into the co-op, which previously was solely worker-owned.

As its name indicates, Just Local Food Cooperative has always been a co-op. Effective this month, however, it’s gotten even co-op-ier.

Confused? Over the years, many shoppers at the local-and-organic focused grocery store have been too. “With food co-ops, people are used to going in and becoming a member,” says Noël Kroeplin, the store’s operations coordinator. Until now, however, that hasn’t been an option at Just Local Food. What began in 2004 as a milk delivery service soon evolved into a worker-owned establishment where employees collectively made decisions – a co-op, in other words, but just not the kind that immediately springs to most shoppers’ minds.

As Just Local Food, 1117 S. Farwell St, has evolved, the co-op has reached a point where its worker-owners want to give shopper-owners a role beyond buying cage-free eggs and shade-grown coffee. In short, it’s becoming the kind of co-op you can join if you’re willing to buy a $150 share. (Don’t worry, non-shareholders are still welcome to shop too.)

“I feel that they should have a voice in the decision-making. They’re the ones who walk through the door every day.” – Noël Kroeplin of Just Local Food, on allowing customers to buy co-op shares

“Anyone in the community can purchase a share of ownership in the cooperative and enjoy benefits and involvement in the community, and they can save money on groceries,” explained Beth Martin, Just Local’s marketing and consumer service coordinator. Owners will get special discounts, dividends in the form of patronage refunds during profitable years, and the ability to vote for (or serve on) the board of directors.

As a co-op, Just Local has adhered to a set of principles outlined by the International Co-operative Alliance, which include democratic member control and member economic participation. “Offering membership to the community is another step in fulfilling our commitment to those principles,” Martin says. “We’re hoping to build a stronger local economy by pursuing this model.”

Not coincidentally, Just Local’s worker-owners hope this makes for a more stable and successful business; after all, they are a for-profit entity. Of course, Just Local isn’t be the only co-op grocery in town: Consumers Cooperative Association operates Mega Foods supermarkets and Mega Holiday convenience stores. However, Just Local is different in size and scope than conventional grocery stores, foregoing many of the products you’ll find at big supermarkets and focusing on organic produce, hormone-free milk, grass-fed beef, and other local, sustainable edibles. “The general feeling is we have something that the community needs,” Martin said. “We have access to natural and organic whole foods, 70 percent of which are grown, distributed or processed in the Midwest.”

The shift to a hybrid worker- and consumer-owned co-op structure isn’t the only change Just Local has undergone recently. In the past year, the co-op adopted a six-member board of directors (comprising three worker-owners and three consumer-owners) and solidified its management structure. Gone are the days when as many as 13 or 14 worker-owners tried to reach consensus on business decisions, a process that was democratic but cumbersome.

“We were a little idealistic to begin with, but we realized that we needed more structure to deal with the growth we’ve had,” says merchandising coordinator Jordan Wolfe, the only one of the co-op’s four original worker-owners left. Now the board will make big decisions, giving shoppers a formal seat at the table.

“I feel that they should have a voice in the decision-making,” Kroeplin says of customers. “They’re the ones who walk through the door every day” and support the co-op with their patronage, she notes.

Consumer ownership opened Sept. 1, and the co-op hopes to gain 200 new owners by the end of the year. The roll-out of the effort has been gradual, but advertising will pick up by mid-month and shares will be sold during the co-op’s annual harvest festival, which is Saturday, Sept. 21.

Shares are being sold in two ways. Future co-op owners can either give the cashier $150 to make an immediate purchase, or they can make four payments of $40 each over an 18-month period, one every six months. In addition to lending financial support to the co-op, ownership conveys benefits such as patronage refunds in profitable years, monthly sale prices, and four “Owner Days” during which owners will get 10 percent off their total purchases.

For more information about Just Local Food Co-op, visit justlocalfood.com, call (715) 552-3366, or stop in the store, 1117 S. Farwell St., between 8am and 9pm any day of the week.