Another Larry Summers' blunder
V.2, N.06
“At a 2019 conference, the economist Larry Summers characterized co-ops as intrinsically sleepy and short-sighted: "‘When you put workers in charge of firms and you give them substantial control over the firms,’ he said, ‘the one thing you do not get is expansion. You get more for the people who are already there.’”
Please. The above paragraph comes from a wonderful new piece in The New Yorker by Nick Romeo. Featured as our lead article, the story is about the Mondragon federation of worker cooperatives in the Basque Region of Spain. The article goes on to demolish Larry Summers’ simplistic argument and demonstrates how cooperatives can succeed:
“Worker-owned cooperatives are often considered both idealistic and inefficient; the model is seen as suitable mainly for upscale grocery stores or boutique bakeries in progressive towns… And yet Mondragon is not a sleepy grocery store. Its collection of co-ops employs around eighty thousand people, and seventy-six percent of those who work in manufacturing co-ops are owners. One makes bicycles at an industrial scale; others make elevators or produce huge industrial machines used in the production of jet engines, rockets, and wind turbines. Mondragon’s businesses include schools, a large grocery chain, a catering company, fourteen technology R. & D. centers, and a McKinsey-like consulting firm. In 2021, the network brought in more than eleven billion euros in revenue.”
The reason we cover cooperatives in The Main Street Journal, of course, is that they are one of the fastest growing opportunities for local investment. Another reason is they work. Proof in point – the Slow Boom Coffee, a worker cooperative in Redlands California started through a $36,000 Kickstarter campaign. It is also featured in this issue.
We have a third piece that continues a theme from a few issues back about how big cities like New York are starting to take community land trusts seriously as a way to solve its affordable housing crisis. It’s enormously irritating to hear otherwise thoughtful people like The New York Times columnist and podcaster Ezra Klein blame the housing crisis on zoning and permits when, in fact, giving municipal land to community land trusts could address much of the problem.
Our fourth piece is a good-news story from Washington DC. Thirty investors helped save a local market by buying the building. This is exactly the investment strategy we should all be considering, especially as the Dow Jones continues to tank.
Finally, if you’re new to local investing – or know someone who is – have them consider enrolling in my forthcoming workshop on “Local Investment 101”. Details are below under Events.
– Michael Shuman, Publisher, The Main Street Journal
NEWS
How Mondragon Became The World’s Largest Co-Op, The New Yorker (August 27)
Worker-Owned Slow Bloom Coffee Cooperative Comes Into Its Own In California, Daily Coffee News (August 25)
As Homeownership Rates Decline in NYC, Could Community Land Trusts Be An Answer? City & State (August 25)
Capitol Hill Neighborhood Rallies Together To Save Neighborhood Market, WTOP News (September 6)
PARTNER VOICES
A Bold Vision For Black Businesses And National Black Business Month, Project Equity (August 31)
Economic Democracy Through Community Capital With Mica Fisher, The Kassan Group (August 29)
Reclaiming Worker Control: New Forms of Ownership, Nonprofit Quarterly (August 24)
EVENTS
Local Investment 101 – Four-part online workshop. Dates: October 4, October 11, October 18, and November 1. Michael Shuman will be partnering with the Center for Community Ownership and the National Coalition for Community Capital to present a series of workshops focused on local investing in Montana. These workshops, which combine four 90-minute classes with 15 videos, will serve as a springboard for the creation of a statewide network focused on the cultivation of Montana's local investing landscape. Non-Montanans are welcome to attend. A free introductory webinar will be held on September 27.
SuperCrowd22 – Online Conference. September 15-16. National Coalition for Community Capital (NC3) is co-hosting the biggest impact crowdfunding conference of the year. Use the discount code NC3friend to get $50 off the $199 registration price. If you’re an NC3 member, you can access the conference for just $75.
Remaking The Economy: Owning Our Future – Webinar. Wednesday, September 14, 2-3pm ET. How do we create an economy in which ownership is truly shared and in which we all co-own the future? Four authors from NPQ’s summer economic justice magazine will challenge us to rethink how to structure ownership at the level of culture, the nonprofit sector, and the workplace. Register here.
Call To Farms: A Conversation About Localism, Nonviolence, And Creating A Peaceable Economy – Webinar. Sunday, September 11, 12-1:30pm ET. Join Slow Money founder Woody Tasch and a roundtable of leading farmers and financiers for a special conversation on localism, nonviolence, and the ins and outs of “the world’s first non-crypto, non-currency”. Register here.
Raise Capital On Your Own Terms: Build It, Fund It, Grow It! – Webinar. November 2-4. Gain invaluable insights around raising capital for your business without compromising your vision or values. In three days, you’ll learn how to design an effective investment offer, identify values-aligned investors, and build the confidence and resources to enable your business to grow and thrive. Buy your ticket here.
ICYMI
Kaiser Permanente Pilots Community Wealth Building Strategy Focused On Employee Ownership Conversions, Fifty by Fifty (August 9)
How Local Governments Are Combating Economic Disadvantage With American Rescue Plan Funds, Brookings Institution (August 23)
JOBS BOARD
Fair Food Network is hiring a Director for the Michigan Good Food Fund.
Mission Driven Finance is seeking a Junior Accountant.
BECOME A MAIN STREET CHAMPION
Have you always wanted to start a local investment club? A website of local investment offerings in your community? A local investment study group? Whatever your interest or ambition, we invite you to “go public” to help others in your region find you, scheme with you, and start a local investment movement in your community. Our goal is to identify dozens, then hundreds, then thousands of Main Street Champions like you across America. We already have Main Street Champions across the U.S., from San Luis Obispo, CA to Providence, RI, and even Australia! Together, we can move our hard-earned savings from Wall Street back into our communities. Fill out the intake survey below to join this growing cohort!
SOME OF MSJ’s VINTAGE ISSUES
About The Main Street Journal
The Main Street Journal aims to catalyze the movement of $50 trillion from Wall Street to Main Street to facilitate economic development and economic justice. It’s sponsored by the National Coalition for Community Capital, with a grant from the Heron Foundation. We welcome feedback about everything, from our design to content. And we welcome suggestions of other groups to involve as partners, and other information to include. Please send ideas to Sophia Leswing at sophia@main-street-journal.com.
PARTNERS
We welcome any nonprofit or for-profit committed to local investment as a partner. If your organization is interested, please contact Sophia Leswing at sophia@main-street-journal.com.