viva verde

i just got wind of the “temporary closing” of the Santa Ana Farmers’ Market a few weeks ago, and although i am a little heartbroken about it, i am not surprised.

i am not just saying that as a spectator or person who has visited the struggling market on a monthly basis, but as someone who actually laid the foundation for that market and got it started in the first place. of course you wouldn’t know this unless you did a little research or actually talked to the many people who were an integral part of starting a service like this in the first place.

a little back story: i left the Grain Project, a non-profit i founded with 2 women in 2005 when i found out about a serious conflict-of-interest within the organization that needed to result in rules or codes of conduct so that the organization as a whole could remain intact long after any of the founders were there. to me, rules happen in society when inappropriate things happen, as to ensure it not happening again. i took a stand, and demanded rules (with the counsel of 2 employee attorneys and other board members) to which i was subjected to ridicule and a “witch hunt” for my resignation.

one evening, after several panic attacks and public bashings of character, i was approached by our board of directors with a proposition: either personally resign, or the board was going to terminate the employment of the person in question. i thought long on and hard on this one. even though i had already signed the lease on what was to be The Road Less Traveled, i was not planning to actually build the store for 1 more year. and honestly, The Grain Project still needed more development in order to be a highly effective non-profit…we still needed to work on the “business” aspect of it.

well, i think you know what happened. and what suffered was a business.

non-profs are tricky: you are there to do good, but need to turn the lights on, need to pay the bills. this is a very difficult thing to grasp in this sector because you dont want to be a money-hungry b-/monster. but again, you need to keep the lights on. the rise of “social entrepreneurship” i think is paving the way for non-profs in a business model and will help future thinkers of doing good, really DO good while creating funds for…DOING GOOD. does that make sense?? let me show you in a basic equation:

good service + good business model= successful organization

problem is: people in non-profs (from my experience, not certifiable and there are efficient ones/many out there) want to just do the humanitarian aspect without thinking of protocol, funding, keeping the lights on. and more essential, let those who know more about sustaining revenue/social entrepreneurship do their work. in other words, DO THEIR JOB. The Grain Project is a great example of NOT embracing this. i have the feeling this has to do with above side story.

late at night i think of Santa Ana…i am sad for the closure yet hopeful that a group of people can make change. can they do it the right way now? even though i am not even welcomed at an event, given glares/rumors..i hope that there will be real leadership and business sense so that The Grain Project can create successful programs.

i hope for the best!

i really do not go into Starbucks that much these days. the coffee usually tastes burnt, the service is more like an assembly line and the service is just not comparable to what i would receive at the local coffeehouse down the street. PLUS, with the amount of coffee they purchase it is sad that a small, small percentage is fair trade. according to the NY Times, i guess other consumers are feeling the same way and Startbucks is closing about 100 of it’s under-performing stores this year. they have reportedly had the worse 3-month performance in their history. some of the things that Starbucks will be doing in the coming year:

- open only 1,175 locations rather than 1600

-only open 75 more abroad (for a total of 975)

-stop making their Breakfast Sandwiches (that didn’t last long!)

-a possible “redefinition of the in-store experience”

i guess we will here more at their March annual meeting.

i don’t want to jump all over Starbucks, they have really help transform coffee culture and brought it into a dominant way of life, heck i partake in that way of life everyday (and they treat their employees pretty well from what i hear). i just think Starbucks needs to just cool their jets and produce GOOD, FAIR, ORGANIC coffee….and chill out on the expanding! 1175 new locations! i mean guys, i don’t think that you are going to go out of business any time soon (although the article did mention that McD’s and Dunkin’ Donuts are gaining ground on them).