The C is for co-operation, not corporation: An open letter to MEC members

We are among the three million members of Mountain Equipment Co-op, Canada's largest consumer co-operative. At most other stores, we're just consumers, but as members, we're also owners, and we all have an equal share. If you live in Canada, there's a one in ten chance you're also a member-owner. If you've ever shopped at MEC, you are a member-owner.

Large co-ops in Canada have a history of drifting toward acting like for-profit companies run for shareholder profit, seeing their member-owners as customers rather than owners. At MEC, some member-owners have from time to time fought this trend, and the result of these initiatives is precisely what makes MEC compelling today: leading-edge sustainability practices, and the donation of 1 per cent of the co-op's $300 million in annual revenues to environmental organizations.

Democracy and the value of co-operation: An open letter to MEC members

The board of directors of Mountain Equipment Co-op has introduced a Special Resolution, requiring approval by at least 75 per cent of voting members, that seeks to give the board power to choose which candidates appear on the nomination ballot according to criteria that the board itself defines. We are writing on behalf of scores of concerned MEC members across Canada, and we ask that all MEC members please read the following before deciding how to vote.

Why we care


Along with 3.3 million other members, we don't just shop at MEC stores as consumers. When we step through the doors of our local MEC, we aren't just looking for a new backpack, climbing shoes or tent -- we're also there as part owners of the Co-op. And the fact that MEC is a co-op, that it represents a different way of doing business, is a big part of why we support it.