Front & Center: Main Market food co-op’s Megan White

No one would question Megan White’s toughness.

After all, she’s trekked both the 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail and the 2,659-mile Pacific Crest Trail.

Yet when asked what managing downtown Spokane’s Main Market food co-op has taught her about herself, White replied, “That I can do a lot more than I thought I could.

“I’ve been in more uncomfortable situations than I can count during the past three-and-a-half years. I haven’t lost my soft, sensitive side, but you have to be tough to run a small retail business.”

Later this month, a larger market similar to Huckleberry’s will open just 10 blocks away, at Kendall Yards.

During a recent interview, White discussed competition, as well as career anxiety and Coca-Cola.

S-R: Where did you grow up?

White: I was born in Baton Rouge and grew up outside of Atlanta.

S-R: What were your interests?

White: Everything. I did really well in my classes and played sports.

S-R: How about outside of school?

White: When I was 11, my dad took me hiking. I remember complaining the whole time, but the second we got in the car to drive home, I said, “When are we going again?”

S-R: What was your first real job?

White: Right after I got my driver’s license, I started working at Target. I’d show up at 3:30, work until 10, then do homework until 1 a.m.

S-R: What career did you envision?

White: The idea of choosing a career caused me a lot of anxiety. My dad was a banker and my mom was a nurse, and they were really good at their jobs. But I never got the sense that they loved their work. It scared me to think of doing something the rest of my life if I didn’t love it.

S-R: What was your focus in college?

White: I earned quite a bit of advanced credit in high school, so when I arrived at Louisiana State University at 18, I was already a junior. I majored in international relations with a concentration in Africa and the Middle East, and minored in French.

S-R: And after graduation?

White: I thought I needed to go law school, so I took the LSAT without studying.

S-R: Did you pass?

White: (laugh) Yes, but my score wouldn’t have gotten me into anywhere I wanted to go. So instead I started hiking the Appalachian Trail. I broke the trip into two sections over two years. Each section took two-and-a-half months.

S-R: Then what?

White: I worked in natural food stores in between hiking adventures. I’d move to different cities and save up until I found an adventure I wanted to do. I hiked the Pacific Crest Trail after working at a Portland health food store, and through that met my husband, who was from Spokane. I moved here in 2009.

S-R: And got back into natural food stores?

White: Yes. First I worked as produce manager at Fresh Abundance, which went out of business. Just before the Main Market co-op opened, I was hired as a produce stocker.

S-R: Describe your rise to general manager.

White: The co-op had quite a few shake-ups the first few months due to not meeting sales projections. I became produce manager and then joined the interim GM team when the next GM left. When the third GM left, I probably would have applied for the position but I was about to have a baby. When the next GM transition happened in 2013, I stepped in.

S-R: So you were the fifth general manager in …?

White: Four years.

S-R: Is high turnover typical in natural food markets?

White: Yes. And the majority of our business is deli, which is more entry-level, kitchen-type positions, where turnover is quite high.

S-R: What lessons learned growing up transferred to this career?

White: Being raised in the South, where manners are important, made me more aware of the importance of customer service.

S-R: How about experiences during your epic hikes?

White: Certainly endurance – sticking with something when it’s hard.

S-R: How has the co-op evolved since opening in 2010?

White: At first, we were caught up in the mission of promoting local farmers, but didn’t have the grocery thing figured out at all. We’ve worked on pricing and merchandising since then, and gotten better at customer service.

S-R: Give me an example of a bad customer experience?

White: (laugh) Gosh, we’ve had so many. One customer called and said her house almost burned down because of our beeswax candles and demanded we quit selling them. I was in the process of testing them in the back room when she came in, and she was livid that they were still on our shelves.

S-R: Was she a co-op member?

White: I don’t think so. But some of our most difficult encounters are with co-op members who expect special treatment, like the right to park in our tiny lot even if they’re not shopping at the store.

S-R: What does being a co-op member entail?

White: A voting share costs $180, which can be spread out over years. Benefits include coupons and other discounts, some free workshops and a newsletter. But the most important benefit is knowing that a big corporation doesn’t own one of the most important things in your life.

S-R: What is the market’s niche?

White: No other retail store open seven days a week has the selection of local produce we have at such good prices, and we carry a ton of locally made specialty items. Also, our deli offerings are unique.

S-R: What do you not have that typical groceries stock?

White: During Hoopfest, we get lots of requests for Coca-Cola and Gatorade, which we don’t carry.

S-R: What do you tell those customers?

White: The first few years, I tried talking to them about high-fructose corn syrup, but that never went over well. I’ve learned to just show them the products we have that are similar.

S-R: Looking back, have there been best of times and worst of times?

White: We’ve definitely had quite a few worst of times. I would never recommend opening a business before you’re ready. Seven years on, we’re still writing policy manuals, which is way harder after the fact.

S-R: How big a role has philanthropist Jim Sheehan played?

White: He’s our landlord and provided a significant portion of the capital that allowed us to open our door. We’re still here because of him.

S-R: What’s a business lesson you’ve learned?

White: Consult with experts. People my age tend to think we’re geniuses and don’t need to listen to older people. That can lead to big mistakes. For instance, if we had been more conservative with our sales projections, we might have avoided painful layoffs.

S-R: Besides internal decisions, what has affected Main Market’s evolution?

White: Competition has had the biggest impact.

S-R: How much competition do you anticipate from the new market opening in Kendall Yards?

White: The biggest thing is that they won’t be as restricted as we are about the products on the shelves. They’ll probably have things like Cheerios, which we can’t.

S-R: Why not?

White: Our membership expects us to carry health foods and not capitulate to what just makes us money, which is a hard position to be in. It’s something I want to bring to the table, because we have one of the lowest percentages of sales to members of any food co-op in the country. Conventioners love us, but that’s not the lifeblood of a community food co-op.

S-R: Do you ever worry the market might fail?

White: Sure. Most small-business owners do. And when you throw in all the complexities of being not for profit, plus all these minimum-wages changes … yeah, it’s something I always worry about.

S-R: Yet you hang in there. Why?

White: Because where people spend their money matters – more than any political vote.

S-R: What’s a typical work week?

White: Besides general manager, I’m the finance manager, HR manager, marketing manager and store manager. So half the time I’m responding to surprises – customer issues, employee issues, HR issues – and the other half I’m trying to think strategically. I have two small children, so I try to limit my work week to 40 hours. Otherwise, I’d be here 50 to 60.

S-R: What do you like most about your job?

White: The people. Seeing farmers come in our back door every day, or little kids bringing us coolers of eggs. Also, our neighbors. Last week, I was landscaping – that’s another thing I do for the co-op – and I was aware of how many happy people we have on this block.

S-R: Your customers include conventiongoers, co-op members, people who work nearby and neighbors. Do you also get homeless people?

White: Yes. A lot.

S-R: Does that create challenges?

White: It does, for sure. We spend a significant amount of time training employees about how to engage with people who might be aggravated. The flip side is that we have a really high percentage of sales to EBT (electronic benefits transfer) customers, and we offer them a discount. Also, part of our mission is being accessible to our neighbors, and we’re only a block away from a shelter.

S-R: What’s been your best idea?

White: I think my best idea, which I stole from a co-op in North Carolina, is about to happen. We’re going to start offering $3 Thursday dinners as a way to break down barriers and get more people through our door.

S-R: Some grocery stores offer delivery. Have you considered that?

White: We’ve talked about bike deliveries to downtown businesses during lunchtime, and curbside pickup, because parking is an issue.

S-R: By the way, when was the last time you had a Coke?

White: (laugh) When I visited family in New Orleans earlier this year, I’m sure I had some Coke product on the plane.

S-R: What will you say the first time your kids ask for a Coke?

White: Depriving them of something is only going to make them crave it more. You have to have real conversations. The same goes for our co-op. No one wants to shop where they’re made to feel bad because they want something we don’t have. So any way we can make the Main Market more accessible to the community, I want to do that. And if members want me to carry Coke, I will.

Writer Michael Guilfoil can be contacted at mguilfoil@comcast.net.