Wheatsville Co-op Austin, TX

[Dan Gillotte <gm AT wheatsville.com>]

HI friends!

Lots of e-mail action, so let's get to it!

Here is what you'll find if you just scroll on down!

Owner Gathering

Co-op Savings!

News from our departments

Board meeting date changes

Thank you to everyone who came out and shopped on the last Member Appreciation Day! It was really great to see so many of you. I also appreciate your patience as you waited in some pretty long lines. It was our busiest day ever by far! We also had a record-breaking sales week, too! We really do appreciate your continued patronage and I hope that you feel appreciated, not just on our special days, but every day!

Spring Owner Gathering

We would love to see you at our Owner Gathering this Tuesday, April 1st from 6:30-9:30 at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar! We'll start with our annual business meeting and the  the board will be sharing some information with you about their work and the long range vision of the co-op, we'll have some exciting news about our imminent project including a start date and we'll be watching a cool movie about sustainable agriculture called The Real Dirt on Farmer John. (Learn more and see the trailer here: http://www.farmerjohnmovie.com/FJhome.html ) We'll be providing a free drink and some appetizers. Tickets are on a first come first served basis. Owners may pick up tickets in advance at the registers. Owners may each get two tickets, but they are limited, so please only get them if you are really able to attend, ok?The last movie night gathering that we had was a lot of fun and people enjoyed it a lot. I hope that we'll see you next week! (It is on April Fool's Day, but we're really having  a gathering, no joke!)

Coupon Books! 

You have probably gotten our Co-op Advantage coupon book in the mail by now. I'm really pleased to be able to continue to offer these values through our association and collaboration with the 100+ other National Co-op Grocers Association Co-ops throughout the country. We don't carry every single item in the coupon book, though we do carry most of them. The savings from these coupons of just the items that we do carry is almost $30! So, bring your book the next time you shop and you may just find some great savings!

March is ending, so this is your last weekend to stock up on any of your favorite items that are in Co-op Advantage sale this month! (Of course, we'll have more great deals next month!)

News from our departments!

Now some words from Mike Crissey, our perishables buyer:

 

MAKE ROOM IN YOUR REFRIGERATOR!!

 

Two of our best-selling items in the dairy cooler go on sale next month (April). First off, we have what owner and current Board President Rose-Marie Klee calls, "The Mega-Sale." GT's Kombucha will be on sale for $2.49 (or 2 for $5) down from our regular price of $2.99. I would like to encourage as many of you as possible to buy cases. Although Kombucha now has two shelves instead of one, it still continues to fly off the shelves and we can't always kleep up. The sale price also means a case of Kombucha will cost you $30 even all month. If you'd like a case, please don't hesitate to call, turn in a special order form or drop me an e-mail.

 

Cascade Fresh fat free yogurt cups will be on CAP for 65 cents, down from their regular price of 89 cents. This yogurt is one of our better selling brands, and not just for the price. Cascade Fresh uses eight live cultures, the yogurt is cultured in each cup and has no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, colors, flavors or additives.

 

FREE UP YOUR FREEZER!!

 

You may have few excuses for not eating enough fruits and vegetables in April. Cascadian Farms vegetables in 10-oz. bags will be $1.89 down from $2.19 to $2.89, while you can grab 8- to 10-.oz bags of Cascadian Farms fruit for $2.99 (reg. $4.19).

 

Also on sale are: Van's Frozen Waffles ($2.69, reg. $3.39); Soy Dream Non-Dairy Desserts ($2.69, reg. $3.29); and Nates Taquitos ($3.49, reg. $4.99).

 

CAP + COUPONS = EXTRA SAVINGS

 

Besides the great prices we get on some of our national sale items, owners and members can get additional savings with their Co-op Advantage Savings coupon booklet, which should come in the mail with your Wheatsville Breeze. Here are a couple of the great deals I found:

 

-- Brown Cow Quart Yogurts for $1.89!! ($2.29 on sale; $.40 off with coupon)

-- Half-gallons of Silk Soymilk for $2.39!! ($2.89 on sale; $.50 off with coupon)

 

Some more savings from the coupon booklet include:

 

Refrigerated:

Organic Valley Eggs -- $1 off any dozen

Organic Valley Lactose-Free Milk -- $1 off a half-gallon

Spectrum Naturals 16 oz. Flax Oil -- $1 off

Tofurky Deli Slices -- $.50 off

 

Frozen:

Amy's Frozen Pizzas, $1 off any size

Food For Life English Muffins, $.35 off

Nate's Meatless Meatballs -- $.75 off

Natural Sea Crab Cakes, Cod Fish Sticks and Salmon Filets -- $.50 off

Rising Moon Organics Ravioli -- $.50 off

 

TEXAS PRIDE!

 

Do you need another reason to buy organic milk from Texas cows? How about this -- Organic Valley Texas Pastures half-gallons of milk are now coming in cardboard. I had heard that some people hadn't been buying the half-gallons of the Texas Pastures' milk because of the plastic jugs and concerns of possible chemical leaching. If you had been hesitant, I'd urge you to grab a half-gallon. Although we don't have our own brand of milk, Organic Valley comes close as a cooperative of 1,200 family farms.

 

(SIGH) THAT AGAIN?!?

 

Do you have a recipe using a product we sell in the dairy case or freezer that you think everyone should try? Send it in! You can win the admiration and respect of your fellow owners while helping us sell more stuff. If you come up with a recipe using an item currently on CAP, I'll definately try to share it.

 

NEWS FROM THE BEER COOLERS!

Hops Shortage!

This weeks Austin Chronicle features an excellent article highlighting a world-wide hops shortage. In case you didn’t know, hops is VERY important in the beer making process! Take a look online:

http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:603813

 

 

Board meeting date changes for the next two months:

March Board meeting will be held on MONDAY, APRIL 7, 6:00PM

April Board meeting will be held on TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 6:00PM

All board meetings are open to owners and currently held in the Wheatsville Annex behind the store. (The former InStep building.) You can find agendas posted the week prior to each meeting at http://wheatsville.coop/bodagenda.html

Have a great week!!

Dan

Wheatsville GM and e-mail guy!