Owned by its' members and open to the community, the East Aurora Cooperative Market (EA Co-op) will be a full-service grocery store that will feature fresh, seasonal local foods. It is scheduled to op...
Owned by its' members and open to the community, the East Aurora Cooperative Market (EA Co-op) will be a full-service grocery store that will feature fresh, seasonal local foods. It is scheduled to open in mid 2015 in an 8,000 square foot (4,475 square feet of retail) space in the beautiful village of East Aurora, New York. The EA Co-op resides in a community with a highly ranked school district and a trade area rich in history, agriculture, art, nature and community members who understand the importance of supporting and strengthening all of those resources. The board recently hired a General Manager who oversees the successful operations of the store through the opening phase and beyond, including hiring both full and part-time staff to replace the volunteer committees. The General Manager reports to the board of directors under Policy Governance. The EA Co-op currently has over 1,000 member-owners (and growing). As a member-owned business, meeting the needs of current member-owners and welcoming new member-owners will be an ongoing priority. The elected board of directors serves on behalf of the member-owners of the cooperative. For operational support, the EA Co-op is working with a national organization (National Cooperative Grocers Association Development Cooperative) through opening and for the first years after opening. For governance support, the board of directors works with an adviser from Cooperative Board Leadership Development (CBLD) through Cooperative Development Services Consulting Co-op.