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The business model was basically lifted from REI, with members providing startup money with a $5 membership fee.
“REI was working as a co-operative, (we thought), ‘Why don’t we do that ourselves?’ So we did,” said Byers.
MEC started out of a small office on Hastings Street, but really started to thrive when it moved to a second-storey retail space on West Fourth in Kitsilano.
“I only worked for them for four years, then we found two or three other believers (to take over),” said Byers, 71, who’s retired and living in Kelowna. “A fellow by the name of Tom Herbst arrived on the scene. It’s called Mountain Equipment Co-op, but I’ve always argued it should be called Tom’s of B.C.
“Are you familiar with Tom’s of Maine? It’s a huge outdoor store in the eastern United States. He was the heart of Mountain Co-op after I left.”
Herbst said he’s “kind of amazed” at how it took off.
“The thing with co-ops is, you’re always under pressure for more capital to grow,” he said. “We were largely able to grow organically. But if it’s a true co-op, one $5 (membership) per person, you can’t raise capital quickly. Nobody’s going to give you a million dollars just so you can expand.”
Steady growth became rapid under the direction of former CEO David Labistour between 2008 and 2019, when it grew to 22 stores and almost doubled its membership.
Gray said the growing trend toward online sales and arrival of international retailers in Canada probably forced Labistour to expand.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiXWh0dHBzOi8vdmFuY291dmVyc3VuLmNvbS9uZXdzL2xvY2FsLW5ld3MvZm91bmRlcnMtcmVmbGVjdC1vbi1zYWxlLW9mLW1vdW50YWluLWVxdWlwbWVudC1jby1vcNIBiwFodHRwczovL3ZhbmNvdXZlcnN1bi5jb20vbmV3cy9sb2NhbC1uZXdzL2ZvdW5kZXJzLXJlZmxlY3Qtb24tc2FsZS1vZi1tb3VudGFpbi1lcXVpcG1lbnQtY28tb3Avd2NtLzMxYTgzNWQ1LWVjZDItNDY2MC05ZDYzLWUzNGJhNjg5OTdkMi9hbXAv?oc=5
2020-09-16 01:31:26Z
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