WHAT IS A CO-OP?

A Co-op Is A Business - With a difference! The difference is that the Co-op is locally owned and controlled by its members and is characterized by various membership benefits.

Anyone can apply for a Co-op membership. It simply involves filling out an application to purchase shares in the Co-op. The investment varies from one Co-op to another, but is usually between $1.00 and $30.00. One becomes a Co-op member-owner upon approval of the membership or the Board of Directors.

A Co-op membership can be mutually beneficial to the member-owner and the Co-op. To gain the most from a Co-op membership, members are encouraged to support their Co-op though the purchase of goods and services, in order to make their Co-op a viable business. In turn, the Co-op has a commitment to its member-owners to remain competitive and operate efficiently.

A unique feature of your Co-op is that it is locally controlled. The Co-op's one member one vote system opens up exciting opportunities for members to participate in the decision making process of the Co-op. Members are encouraged to attend the Annual meeting and participate in establishing the policies and by-laws which direct the operation of the organization.

The Co-op Board of Directors are elected by it's members. The Board oversees the operation of the Co-op and directs its progress. It is also responsible for communicating with the Co-op members to ensure that their needs are met. Co-op members can have direct input by serving on committees, or by offering suggestions to the Board of Directors, General Manager or Staff.

On the surface, the Co-op looks much like any other local business. However unlike other businesses, any savings generated by the Co-op are returned to member-owners, proportionate to the amount purchased from the Co-op during the year. These member savings accumulate as equity in each member's share account as long as the store is in a positive cash flow. Those times when the store is in a negative position your patronage refund is used to run the store and your equity will not increase nor will it decrease, so the more a member supports the Co-op, the greater his or her chance of increasing their equity can become. At the discretion of the Co-op's Board of Directors, a percentage of a member's equity maybe returned to the Member in the form of cash refund. In any case, the money stays in the community to be used and reinvested.

Yearly equity cash payments depends on the amount of equity one has in his account. Cash payments are paid out as follows: if you have between $1 and $500 in equity in your share account, your allocated share of what you spent that year will be 25% cash and 75% goes to build up your share account. Once you hit $500 to $1000 in equity you get 50% cash and 50% goes to your share account. $1000+ you get 75% in cash. Members moving out of the Co-op trading area can apply to the Board to have their share account paid out in full. Still confused? Stop by our office and we'll glad to explain it to you.

Some of you may be wondering why it's been a long time since the Co-op paid out cash dividends. Before the board can do this the store has to be in a positive position. We have had some rough years and for a time we thought we may have to close the store. We had no Manager, moral was at it's lowest and the mild winters made it possible for people to do most of their shopping in Prince George. The fall of 2003 we hired a new GM, her duties were to control costs and bring prices down to a competitive level. During 2004, the Co-op made large strides forward. We introduced a value pricing program. In addition the staff took a 10% rollback in wages and everyone did what they could to control costs. January 2005 marked the end of the reporting year for the store's business. Our financial auditors have told us that we are doing things right. Our bottom line also received a boost this year from a higher then expected patronage refund due to the worlds higher fuel prices thus generating higher profits for Federated Cooperative Ltd refinery in Saskatchewan This along with the activities noted above, brought us a positive figure for the year. Again, this could not have been accomplished without the unwavering loyalty from the management and staff, the continued support of the members and the board of directors for their time, and commitment to making your Coop a strong, and stable business. As things stand today 2006 looks good and the Board is looking forward to approving an equity distribution, which may or may not have a cash component. Although it may be small it's a start, and a sign of a better time to come.

AUTUMN LODGE SOCIETY CO-OP BOOK EXCHANGE
The Book Exchange is located at the north entrance next to Pharmasave. The Exchange has been very successful, but there is always a need for more books, All monies raised go towards the building of a senior citizens retirement housing complex here in Mackenzie, Your donations are greatly appreciated.