McCormick's Co-op Business Start-up Fund
Donation protected
Dear Friends:
Portland, Oregon is a city poised to develop co-operative jobs and businesses. New immigrants arriving daily magnify the demand for co-ops as alternatives to business-as-usual corporations. There is great opportunity for co-op expansion and job growth in Portland. That is why I have decided to commit my knowledge, skills, and experience to help meet this need. I’m writing to ask for your help.
My goal is to start a consulting service focusing on building cooperatives—especially worker co-operatives—and creating networks within the Portland area for those coops to support each other. My “big picture” idea is to create a worker coop consulting and development organization. Helping me now will help fund the building blocks of this organization.
A co-op is a business jointly owned and democratically controlled by its workers, consumers, producers, or some combination thereof. Unlike corporations—which value short-term profit above all else—co-ops value self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity, honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. Guidelines by which these values are put into practice are well-developed and effective at producing socially responsible, environmentally sustainable, economically prosperous businesses benefiting hundreds of millions of people around the world.
Building co-ops in Portland fits well into my record of getting things done.
• Almost twenty-five years ago I first stood as a candidate for the Wisconsin Legislature on a platform of “clean ethical government, quality healthcare for all, and fair taxation.”
• As a Dane County Board Member I wrote campaign finance reform and recycling laws, served proudly as an openly gay elected official, and stood with my colleagues to block suburban sprawl and to preserve parkland.
• At Union Cab I served fifteen years as taxi driver, director, and president--helping build a nationally recognized worker co-op employing over 270 people. While there, I led efforts to convert to an energy efficient cab fleet, negotiated decentralized conflict resolution and management structures, and coordinated solidarity efforts during the Wisconsin Uprising.
• In 2012 I organized and chaired the Madison Co-operative Business Conference. During that conference, a coalition of co-ops, credit unions, and the university demonstrated to entrepreneurs and local economic development officials how to develop Madison’s regional co-operative economy.
• In 2014 I was made president of an exciting startup co-op organizing a natural foods grocery here in East Portland; they are keeping me very busy.
I believe this history is a predictor of my success. But in order to be successful over the next six months, I will need to raise at least $8,000 to pay for things like: rent, internet, transportation, office supplies, and trainings. Although I'm not entirely sure what my final business proposal is going to look like, I'm thinking about forming a small group of about 5-7 dedicated worker co-operators with experience and drive. It would operate as a small worker co-op consulting firm--and it could even begin as a part-time commitment. Similar business models exist and are successful, but I have found nothing exactly like what I'm proposing--a worker co-op focused on developing worker co-ops in one region--and that makes it exciting.
If you care about the continued success of my work to build co-ops in Portland, please consider making a contribution. Anything you can donate will help!
My goal is to help build co-operative businesses. Will you help me?
Co-operatively,
Scott McCormick
Portland, Oregon is a city poised to develop co-operative jobs and businesses. New immigrants arriving daily magnify the demand for co-ops as alternatives to business-as-usual corporations. There is great opportunity for co-op expansion and job growth in Portland. That is why I have decided to commit my knowledge, skills, and experience to help meet this need. I’m writing to ask for your help.
My goal is to start a consulting service focusing on building cooperatives—especially worker co-operatives—and creating networks within the Portland area for those coops to support each other. My “big picture” idea is to create a worker coop consulting and development organization. Helping me now will help fund the building blocks of this organization.
A co-op is a business jointly owned and democratically controlled by its workers, consumers, producers, or some combination thereof. Unlike corporations—which value short-term profit above all else—co-ops value self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity, honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. Guidelines by which these values are put into practice are well-developed and effective at producing socially responsible, environmentally sustainable, economically prosperous businesses benefiting hundreds of millions of people around the world.
Building co-ops in Portland fits well into my record of getting things done.
• Almost twenty-five years ago I first stood as a candidate for the Wisconsin Legislature on a platform of “clean ethical government, quality healthcare for all, and fair taxation.”
• As a Dane County Board Member I wrote campaign finance reform and recycling laws, served proudly as an openly gay elected official, and stood with my colleagues to block suburban sprawl and to preserve parkland.
• At Union Cab I served fifteen years as taxi driver, director, and president--helping build a nationally recognized worker co-op employing over 270 people. While there, I led efforts to convert to an energy efficient cab fleet, negotiated decentralized conflict resolution and management structures, and coordinated solidarity efforts during the Wisconsin Uprising.
• In 2012 I organized and chaired the Madison Co-operative Business Conference. During that conference, a coalition of co-ops, credit unions, and the university demonstrated to entrepreneurs and local economic development officials how to develop Madison’s regional co-operative economy.
• In 2014 I was made president of an exciting startup co-op organizing a natural foods grocery here in East Portland; they are keeping me very busy.
I believe this history is a predictor of my success. But in order to be successful over the next six months, I will need to raise at least $8,000 to pay for things like: rent, internet, transportation, office supplies, and trainings. Although I'm not entirely sure what my final business proposal is going to look like, I'm thinking about forming a small group of about 5-7 dedicated worker co-operators with experience and drive. It would operate as a small worker co-op consulting firm--and it could even begin as a part-time commitment. Similar business models exist and are successful, but I have found nothing exactly like what I'm proposing--a worker co-op focused on developing worker co-ops in one region--and that makes it exciting.
If you care about the continued success of my work to build co-ops in Portland, please consider making a contribution. Anything you can donate will help!
My goal is to help build co-operative businesses. Will you help me?
Co-operatively,
Scott McCormick
Organizer
Scott McCormick
Organizer
Portland, OR