The Wedge Board of Directors is pleased to report that in the past year The Wedge continued to do very well. The loyalty and support of our members and the commitment of our dedicated and highly skilled staff continue to make The Wedge a national model among co-ops. Our commitment to remain connected to the community of members, and the many other communities with which we work, including our neighborhood, local charitable organizations, other Twin Cities co-ops, and local growers and producers, has never wavered.
The State of the Co-op: Once again, we can be proud of the financial results for The Wedge. The fiscal year that ended on June 30, 2012 was the best yet. The combined sales from the store, Co-op Partners Warehouse, and Gardens of Eagan were more than $48 million, over 10 percent more than last year. While coops may return to the members as little as 20 percent of member-generated profit to receive tax benefits, The Wedge will refund 60 percent, more than $800,000, in cash this year. We are most grateful for your continuing support. Our overall financial picture remains extremely solid. We have no long-term debt, and have been able to increase our cash and other assets. Our financial strength has allowed us to continue our strong programs of community outreach and other initiatives. Our commitment to WedgeShare for 2012 was $75,000. This provides grants for local nonprofits whose goals are in line with our own, including services in the areas of organic food, education and sustainability. As before, we are supporting the Midwest Food Connection, a non-profit organization providing lessons to elementary school children about natural and organic food. At the Organic Field School at Gardens of Eagan, we continue to teach farmers how to grow organic vegetables and test new growing methods.
Changes this year: We are in the midst of a search for a new leader for our business. We’ve decided that the title should be changed from general manager to CEO. The change reflects the growth of our cooperative from one retail business, as it started, to a business that has retail and wholesale units, a farm, and is involved in supporting two nonprofit organizations.
Another major change this year was that the staff at Co-op Partners Warehouse voted in March for union representation. Negotiations with the union were smooth and productive. In early October, the staff accepted our first contract offer.
Our Membership Connection: Central to any co-op is the connection between members and the board, and we affirm this important bond through actively surveying our members, now 15,435 in number. As always, the board recognizes that our work is always to serve our members. We will continue to strive to further the success we all share at The Wedge. We have been fortunate to experience this success for decades and realize, as always, that it is a direct result of the dedication, creativity, and efforts of the store’s management, staff, members, shoppers, and those members who step forward to serve on the board and its committees.
Our sincerest thanks and congratulations to all of us. Finally, the most important characteristic about The Wedge, and all co-ops, is that we are in this together. It is this cooperation, through our collective efforts, that gives us tremendous strength. As partners in this endeavor, we have much to celebrate.