The Co-op Community
Truly, a compelling question; still timely and invaluable as an ongoing assessment of motivation, intention and implementation of any initiative with roots in community capacity building and economic equitability. Small businesses are sprouting up all around us as Durham is steadily striving to provide services, goods, experiences and connections that reflect a diverse culture and thriving economic tapestry. A complex and often daunting venture for all stakeholders, new enterprises require a dynamic depth of planning & preparation, but foremost, ideally welcomed and supported by the neighborhoods and communities where they exist.
It takes vision, hard work, and equity to create a community owned store.
The Durham Food Cooperative (PIFC, Inc.), has been around for quite a long time and seems to be in perpetual “development” as the Durham community’s premiere cooperative marketplace. Community inspired and member owned, DFC persists in its commitment to providing an alternative source for natural foods & products in a historically underserved neighborhood. The DFC is aggressively stabilizing how & why it does business, retaining its legacy of community-based, member governed, and sustainable practice. With a reinvigorated Board of Directors, diligent member-Sustainers, and a vested Staff, we are accomplishing significant goals and objectives toward a thriving business that is socially & environmentally responsible while providing a place for people who share a common goal toward “self-help, self-responsibility” and a just food system, empowering ourselves as consumers AND owners.
More food cooperatives will mean stronger communities, more sustainable local agriculture and a renewed spirit of people working together for their mutual benefit.
The Durham-wide community is prime for the benefit and balance that cooperative enterprise offers. There are many opportunities and needs which deserve more authentic consideration and availability of cooperative ventures which are the ideal means of providing goods & services, rooted in a mission and vision that most directly and responsibly reflects the vast range of qualities, characteristics and ideals of Durham residents.
Co-ops recycle a high percentage of their income in the local community.
The Durham Food Coop welcomes and supports the inspired efforts of others in cultivating a community of economic equity, sustainable practices, and grass roots stakeholdership. With this common principal among cooperative enterprise; cooperatives supporting cooperatives, we look forward to the manifestation of future cooperative marketplaces throughout Durham. As the inaugural cooperative venture, we hope that other visionary folks will seek to partner for mutual growth and success, sharing a mission to offer all Durham residents options and alternatives which are committed to fortifying both the social and economic stability of Durham neighborhoods.
~Regina Dyson,
CEO/President Durham Food Cooperative, Board of Directors
