Category: News and updates

  • Wanna Learn About Co-ops? Co-op 101 Is Here For You

    Are you co-op curious? Come join Baltimore Roundtable for Economic Democracy for Co-op 101, a fun filled hour full of conversations about legal structures and capital! We will be discussing the pro’s and con’s of cooperatives, different types of co-ops and their flexible forms of doing business, and how you can put what you have learned to work. If you have ever wondered what a cooperative is, how it’s possible for workers to own a business, or if you have an idea for a cooperative and don’t know where to start, this is for you.

    These events are always free and this is the first of two free virtual educational webinars that we will be doing for the month of May. We will begin at 2pm and should finish at 3pm on May 20th. Make sure to take notes on all the wonderful topics and use the chat to ask any questions. A recording will be available via YouTube for you to watch and share.

    click here to register for Co-op 101. We can’t wait to see you there!

  • New Chapters for Some of our Projects

    Baltimore is becoming recognized more and more for its growing ecosystem of worker-owned cooperatives. We work with many of them and some our supported projects have reached some great milestones in the past couple months.

    In April, Earthbound Building was able to buy land! With a land purchase loan from BRED, these builders are able to have a base of operations for their business. Earthbound Building is a black owned business that builds ecological and sustainable homes and farm structures, using materials and techniques that use less resources and lower their impact on the earth. They are birthed from Black Dirt Farm where they were first farmers who later became builders. They are already booked for the year because their work is high quality and reliable.

    Another recent accomplishment is Red Emma’s finding a new location. That’s right, after seventeen years of business Red Emma’s is buying a building to permanently call home. They will be moving into the neighborhood of Better Waverly near another Baltimore staple, Pete’s Grille. The move should happen towards the end of this year, and it will bring back the much loved and missed Baltimore Free School. The Free School is a space where classes, workshops, business meetings, and other gatherings can be offered and participated in for free. Red Emma’s has always been a resource to the community, and they can do so much more with this location.

    To learn more about these Earthbound Building and Red Emma’s clink the links below.
    Red Emma’s

    Earthbound Building

  • Bloomberg Businessweek Recognizes Baltimore Cooperatives

    Dwight Campbell and Nicole Foster, founders of Cajou Creamery in Baltimore. PHOTOGRAPHER: GABRIELLA DEMCZUK FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK
    Dwight Campbell and Nicole Foster, founders of Cajou Creamery in Baltimore. PHOTOGRAPHER: GABRIELLA DEMCZUK FOR BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK

    On March 31, 2021 Lawrence Lanahan published an amazing article in Bloomberg Businessweek about the cooperative landscape of Baltimore. We are so happy to be included along with Seed Commons, and a few of the co-ps we work with, in an article that highlights cooperative businesses and some of the work we have done.

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-03-31/employee-co-ops-need-financing-these-impact-investors-want-to-help?utm_source=url_link

  • Local Company Benefits From Cooperative Conversions

    WYPR published an article about Joe Squared, written by Emily Sullivan, explaining how this business has stayed afloat amidst this pandemic. Joe Squared is just one of several Baltimore businesses converting to coops. Converting to a cooperative saves the business and all the workers receive the benefits.

    One of the personal benefits of the cooperative structure is group decision making. Business hours, infrastructure, and pay, all become decisions made by everyone. This puts the power in the hands of the workers as a whole.

    Sullivan writes “In the midst of the pandemic, those decisions include setting the price of drinks and establishing COVID-19 safety protocol. Using a voting system, the worker-owners have decided to operate take-out only in order to limit contact/covid spread and established a $3 service fee on each takeout order to boost the pay for front of the house employees from $3.63 an hour to $12. They decided to spread tips to the entire staff, ending the industry tradition of excluding back of the house employees, who work in the kitchen.”   How amazing is that? To read more, follow the link below.

    https://www.wypr.org/post/joe-squared-worker-owners-say-co-ops-can-provide-stability-struggling-restaurants

  • Watch Our August Webinars

    This month we put together a series of free virtual webinars. Jim Johnson and Joseph Cureton helped viewers learn about cooperative basics and cooperative conversions.

    During Introduction to Cooperatives, they shared everything from the basics of getting started to legal structures and capital. Management structures to decision making. We also talked about the pro’s and con’s of owning a cooperative, and the differences between these flexible forms of doing business.

    Intro To Cooperative Conversions & Employee Buyout, was for small business owners. It was geared towards those considering their next steps during the time of COVID-19, or maybe approaching retirement. Cooperative conversions are an increasingly compelling option for business owners. They sell their business to its employees which helps retain jobs and keep small businesses in their communities. During this webinar we discussed steps of the conversion process, and answered questions about whether or not an employee buyout is the right decision.

    If you didn’t get a chance to join us, don’t worry! We recorded the sessions and they are available to watch at any time. Find them below and make sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for updates on future happenings.

  • August Events

    We are bringing you two events this month. ‘Co-op 101’ and ‘A Brief Introduction to Cooperative Conversions and Employee Buyout’.

    Have you ever wondered what a cooperative is, or what it would be like to start your own cooperative? Co-op 101 is the perfect workshop for you. Spend an hour learning about the in’s and out’s of worker-owned cooperative businesses. We will have a conversation about legal structures and capital, pro’s and con’s, and the differences between these flexible forms of doing business. You will leave wanting to put what you’ve learned to work!

    Our Brief Introduction to Cooperative Conversions and Employee Buyout workshop is geared towards small business owners. In the time of COVID-19, small business owners might be pondering ways to preserve their business legacy as they approach retirement. You might be considering a career change, but want to leave your business to people who are competent and already invested in the welfare of the business.

    Cooperative conversions – selling a business to its employees – are an increasingly compelling option to retain jobs and keep small businesses in their communities. We will lead you through the steps of this process, and answer questions about whether an employee buyout might be right for your business.

    If either of these interest you, please register through this link https://linktr.ee/BREDbaltimore

  • The Case for Worker-Cooperative Conversions

    We are happy to present the recording from our latest online session Selling Your Small Business – Practical Strategies for an Employee Buyout

    If you are interested in learning more about the conversion process please feel free to fill out the survey below.

    Learn More

    During the session we discussed the in’s and out’s of selling a small business to it’s employees and covered many topics including:

    Why are so many small business owners selling their businesses to their workers? 

    Most small businesses never find an outside buyer. Without a worker-buyout, your customers lose their brand of choice and your community loses critical economic activity. The longest-serving and most loyal of your workers will be the least likely to find a comparable livelihood elsewhere. When a larger competitor does buy a business, they usually lay off most or all of the workers and dissolve the enterprise. And your legacy disappears!

    Why are worker-owned businesses better? 

    Worker-owned businesses have higher productivity, lower worker turnover, and their profits stay in the community. Workers adopt more global perspectives on their workplace and the welfare of their co-workers and their customers, and engage broader concerns and policy issues about the future of their market, their industrial sector, the larger economy, and the environment. Worker-ownership fosters more engaged citizenship. And your legacy lives on!

    Why are governments incentivizing worker buy-outs? What are those incentives? 

    Aging baby boomers own a large percentage of small businesses, and they’re now looking to retire. Without worker buy-outs, most of these businesses, their jobs, and their other economic activity, will be lost. Worker buy-outs can also deliver significant tax breaks to the seller, and the Small Business Administration is expanding their lending options to support worker buy-outs. 

    Why should I attend the workshop on selling my business and exploring employee ownership? 

    You will get answers to all of your questions about selling to your workers, and we will lead you through the steps involved in doing it. These include overall exploratory process and strategy, ownership and management succession planning, financing options, legal and structural angles, and much more! The Baltimore Roundtable for Economic Democracy is a non-extractive lender that finances worker-buyouts; its members include experienced worker-owners skilled in converting businesses to worker-ownership and supporting workers and owners in making the transition.