Mitchell Manacek

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Meet Candidate Mitchell Manacek

1) Why would you like to serve on the City Market Board? What excites you about becoming a Board Member? 

I have a great respect for the Co-op’s history and an excitement for its future. Food has always been an important part of my story and I see Board Membership as a unique opportunity to leverage my diverse experiences working in our dynamic food system, and relationships with local food leaders, to provide a service to our community. The prospect of becoming a Board Member excites me because I know I will be joining a team of people who are working together to contribute to a healthier, more equitable, and more sustainable food system.

2) Please describe any professional skills you have that will help you to be an effective Board Member. How would you help the Board to balance the business needs of a $50 million business with the need to meet our Global Ends as a community-owned cooperative? 

I have an in depth understanding of this organization, not just as a long-time member, but also as a former employee. My career at City Market began as a Produce Buyer for the Downtown store where I worked directly with our local farmers on a daily basis. I then held two positions on the People & Culture team, first as a Human Resources Specialist and then as a Generalist, where my relationship to the business of the Co-op grew deeper. My close knowledge of the Co-op is supported by a breadth of hands on experiences across the food industry. For example, I was just a kid when I started peeling potatoes in my parents’ small specialty grocery store, I was a bar tender at one Vermont’s premier farm-to-table restaurants, and a server for a high volume institutional dining service. I believe these experiences have given me a familiarity with both the big picture trends and subtle details of today’s food systems — a perspective that would be an asset to the Board. Simultaneously, my MBA degree from Vermont’s Norwich University has prepared me with the business tools and a working financial literacy that will serve the Co-op well.

3) Describe your prior involvement with community organizations and/or cooperatives. What did you learn from these experiences?

As stated above, I have experience in various roles as a Co-op employee that required collaboration with other co-ops. As a Produce Buyer, I developed a working relationship with the team at Deep Root, a Vermont-Quebec co-op of independent organic farmers, that has become a long-standing vendor at City Market. I also attended educational sessions with Equal Exchange, where we learned about their approach to cooperation and fair trade. While I was part of City Market’s People & Culture team, I partnered with Vermont Federal Credit Union to host personal finance classes for staff as part of our employee wellness programming. From these experiences, I learned about the co-op movement and its principles, what operations at a purpose-driven business looks like, and how co-ops have the power to write a new narrative.

4) City Market, Onion River Co-op is a learning organization committed to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) work. What opportunities do you see as a Board member to support these initiatives at City Market and how would you ensure that the Board's work is grounded in these principles? Describe any prior involvement in JEDI work either personally or professionally. 

Much like City Market is a learning organization, I am a learning person. My efforts to grow as an individual have included attending unconscious bias and inclusive language workshops, graduate level coursework on the beneficial power of diversity in organizations, pursuing self-education, and professional assignments relating to environmental justice and building inclusive green economies. I am also a current member of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility’s JEDI Impact Circle, a voluntary group that meets monthly to learn from each other and bring new knowledge back to our respective organizations. By serving on the City Market Board of Directors, I would use my values to support the Board in its unique position of holding the Co-op accountable to its JEDI commitments for the benefit of members, employees, and the broader community. I hope to ground the Board in these principles by approaching my role as a Board member with humility, respect, and the mindset that each meeting presents an opportunity to grow the Co-op's impact. 

5) What opportunities and challenges do you see in the future of City Market?

City Market has an opportunity to continue its leadership in the Burlington area, across Vermont’s food system, and throughout the broader co-op movement. With rising food costs and climate change presenting a challenge to our food systems, focus on sustainable growth that benefits both the Co-op and the local economy is key. As such, the future direction of the Co-op must emphasize access and affordability, meaningful employment opportunities, and building an inclusive food economy for consumers and producers alike.