Board of Directors
MEETING MINUTES
August 24, 2022 - 5:30 pm
Hosted in EFC Community Room, 1341 W. 26th
Attending: President - Shari Gross, Vice President - Alison Kaminski, Secretary - Kevin Schaaf, Treasurer - Michael Barron; Directors: Amanda Gates, Joelyn Bush. Attending via Zoom: Derek Golembeski & Chauncey Dumbya Brown
Staff Personnel: Chief Executive Officer/General Manager - LeAnna Nieratko; Marketing Manager - Heidi Yeagle, Finance Manager - Ben Bowman, HR Manager - Chris Wrobel, Marketing Associate - Ash Smitham
Guests: Maggie Gleason, Alice Nick & Marnie Foss
AGENDA:
Shari Gross called the meeting to order at 5:30 PM.
Member-owner Comments:
Maggie Gleason asked for financial information regarding Equity Request Refunds, June Membership Report and shared that February Minutes from are missing. LeAnna responded that much of the Treasurers and GM’s Report is given to directors, but not always shared directly through minutes. She went on to share that typical requests for Refund of Equity is around 2 to 3 each month. Kevin added that he will ensure that these numbers are added to minutes in the future.
Review of Last Month’s Minutes; K. Schaaf
No corrections or additions were requested.
Motion was made by Michael Barron to accept the July 2022 Minutes as written. Amanda Gates seconded. All were in favor. Motion passed.
CEO/GM Reporting; L. Nieratko
B5- Treatment of Customers
Customer Service is collected into a spreadsheet and collated each month. Many Customer Comments are very specific. It’s unanimous that Black Bean Soup needs to return to the menu.
Safety and Incident Reports are issued and reviewed regularly. De-escalation and Management Process and Procedure are also shared and reviewed regularly.
Discussion: Shari added that it is wonderful to have these things updated and readily available to staff and the BOD.
General Reporting:
Basket size is still small in both locations. Cash loss is low, but not alarming - yet.
● 34 N. Park Row: Order for shipments have been cut in half. Reduction in staffing, due to attrition. The Perishable section has been reduced. Online Ordering rolls out - again - with Erie Insurance on Monday, Aug. 29. Sales were at $44,000. Primary expenses are labor and inventory. 6 new Member Owners.
August’s forecast included Celebrate Erie as a sales driver. Unfortunately, the setup of the beer garden in Perry Square created a physical barrier between the event and the store. EFC ended up tabling on the corner of North Park Row and State with the other Flagship Market vendors, as well as Equal Exchange who was tabling with EFC - handing out samples and EFC cash. Friday 8/19 was also move-in day for Gannon students who came to tour the store with their parents.
● 26th St.: 26 new Member Owners. Bulk Sale happens in late August.
Forecast $65,000 for Aug. was too high. Leanna shared her report on both stores with national comparative charts.
FYIs
In August, EFC partnered with Open Eyes. EFC also spoke at the Jefferson Education Society. Partnerships with Gannon and added Meals by Chef Lisa, a video series created by local Chef and entrepreneur Lisa Heidelberg.
Both locations are closed for Labor Day. The Downtown location will be hosting Art Parties. There is talk of creating a lounge area in the excess space downtown.
Discussion: Michael asked if the financial numbers were close to the projected numbers of the Proforma. LeAnna responded that between the two stores, the numbers are not as far off as anticipated. The 26th location is doing better than anticipated, the downtown location is not. Michael went on to say the opening of the downtown location has provided more visibility to the 26th St. location.
Motion was made by Liz Bugbee to accept the GM’s Report and compliance with B5- Treatment of Customers and General Reporting. Alison Kaminski seconded. All were in favor. Motion passed.
Board Policy Evaluation; S. Gross
D5 - CEO/GM Treatment
Shari shared the new Policy Agreement was reviewed by the Columinate and was lauded.
Discussion: Kevin shared there were no questions or comments about compliance. Joelyn asked that the Policy be revised to reflect both stores.
Motion was made by Joelyn Bush to accept the Board Policy Evaluation review of Policy D5 - CEO/GM Treatment . Michael Barron seconded. All were in favor. Motion passed.
Board Learning: Department Updates
Department Heads shared accomplishments and took questions.
New Business:
● Retreat Wrap Up
The consensus is that a Strategic Planning Committee be formed to address many of the ideas that were shared during the Retreat. The “Vision Statement” revision was discussed. Alison asked that some of what was agreed upon be shared with the staff. The Columinate representative Molly, is working on this. Shari shared she felt the EFC Board’s partnership with Columinate has been helpful, overall. She mentioned that the directors should be thinking about the renewal of their services and at what level, as the renewal will be up in Oct.
● Product Policy Committee Update; J. Bush
Tabled for Sept. meeting.
● Nominating Committee Update; K. Schaaf
Deadline was extended to Aug. 31st. There are (4) applicants. Sept. 15 is the deadline for the documentation from candidates.
● Annual Meeting Planning; J. Bush
Heidi, Ash, Vivian and Chad should serve. LeAnna recommended that Jeremy, of the Ithaca Coop, come and speak about the tandem openings. The Annual Meeting is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 23rd
● Executive Committee - form charter for new Dream Team Committee
The Executive Committee will stay after the meeting adjourns to discuss plans for moving forward.
● Board/CEO-GM Cooperating Committee Report
Tabled for the Sept. meeting.
● November Meeting was planned for Nov. 30.
Closure:
Next board meeting is September 28, 2022 at 5:30pm.
Next PG reviews:
○ CEO/GM - B1 - Financial Condition - perhaps a different policy.
○ Board - C9 - Patronage Decisions
Motion was made by K. Schaaf to adjourn the meeting. A. Kaminski seconded. Meeting adjourned at 6:41 PM.
—
Minutes respectfully submitted by Alethea Bodine, Board Assistant - 9/26/22