by Anya Firszt, General Manager
Hello dear Owners,
July came and went and now we find ourselves into August. Ah, the dog days of summer, fireflies, and vine-ripened tomatoes.
We have a few exciting things to report this month; first is a pilot project remerchandising fresh bakery items at Willy East. We have a new self-service bakery case, which offers unpackaged bakery items. We have been looking for ways to reduce the use of plastics and this is one way we can do just that. Same great products, but not the same use of plastics. Depending on how this goes, we may also do the same at the other two stores.
Willy North has new produce dry racks, and they look wonderful. These racks will offer improved merchandising, which leads to less loss. Also at Willy North, the bulk herbs and spices have been moved from the baking aisle to the bulk department. And, finally, a two-door cooler has been added to the beer/wine department to provide an assortment of cold offerings. All these changes are being done to better serve you, along with providing labor savings and to minimize the use of plastic.
I also wanted to share an exciting new vendor partnership we have established with the Madison Children’s Museum (MCM) and their Lunch Box Program. Check out Kristina’s article, which highlights this along with upcoming activities that the Co-op is putting on at the MCM in August–December of this year.
By August 5, we will be announcing which mural you selected to be painted on the west wall of Willy East. I, for one, am most excited for the new installation!
Board of Directors Elections
There is still time for you to decide that this is the year you plan to run for the Board of Directors! We have three seats that need to be filled this year. The Board Candidate Packet can be found at the Owner Resource Areas in the stores or at willystreet.coop/run-for-board. Deadline to submit an application is August 29 at 3:00pm.
One of the requirements of running for a seat on the Board is to attend one of three Board candidate information sessions to learn more about serving on the Board; the next sessions are scheduled for:
- Friday, August 9 at 6:00pm online (virtual meeting; see willystreet.coop/run-for-board for details)
- Saturday, August 17, at 12pm at Aubergine (1226 Williamson Street, Madison, WI).
If these dates don’t work for you, you can request an alternate date as long as you contact us by August 19; see the Board Candidate Packet for details.
Board elections will be held October 1–16. You can cast your ballot one of four ways; in person (at one of our three stores), via mail, by phone, or online. Stay tuned for future updates.
Upcoming Co-op-Sponsored Events
Sessions at McPike Park is scheduled for Thursday, August 8–Sunday, August 11. We’re proud to be the presenting sponsor of this event.
Festival Perks Passes
Willy Street Co-op is offering Festival Perks Passes to 3,000 Owners to receive half-priced meals and beverages (with or without alcohol) during a three-hour span at one of three community festivals near our stores.
La Fete was last month, but we still have two festivals to go. The Good Neighbor Festival (Owner perk valid: Saturday, August 24, 2:00pm–5:00pm) and the Northside Festival at Mallards stadium (Owner perk valid: Saturday, September 7, 11am–2pm).
Owners with the Perks Pass can display them when purchasing food or beverages and will only be charged half-price during the three-hour timeframe. Passes may be used to purchase up to four half-priced food items or beverages at one time so that caregivers can get food and beverages for themselves and dependents.
To get your pass, stop at Willy West for the Good Neighbor Festival starting on Monday, August 12 at 10am and stop at Willy North for the Northside Festival starting on Monday, August 26 at 10am.
Festival Perks Passes are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last. Each pass is good for the one festival with which it is associated–for example, the one distributed at Willy East is only valid at La Fete de Marquette. Owners with an individual Ownership account may receive a total of one pass for this year; Owners with a household account may receive a total of two passes (for the same festival) for this year if they wish. Festival Perks Passes are non-transferable.
Willy East Rain Garden Sessions
Only four Wednesdays until Labor Day; don’t miss out on live, free acoustic music featuring local musicians in the Willy East rain garden located on the Jenifer Street side of the building from 5-7pm.
Make the most of this month, it will be September before you know it! See you out and about!
-Anya