LEAF, partnering with Shared Capital, recently approved a loan to Seattle Wholesale Growers Market Cooperative (SWGMC), to finance their move into a 5,500 square foot warehouse.
SWGMC is a producer cooperative in Seattle, Washington that gives member-growers the opportunity to pool their product for co-op staff to store, market, and sell. This allows the member-growers to spend more time and energy on their farms. New members are assigned crops that are well-suited to their growing expertise and also meerts gaps or growth opportunities that the co-op may have. While members are not required to sell their product through the co-op exclusively, many do only use the co-op, and the average percentage of members’ total sales made through the co-op is 65%. The co-op currently has 11 member-owners, each a grower of flowers and other plants in Washington or Oregon.
The co-op has moved into a new, larger facility that will allow them to be more efficient, better market products, and hire additional staff. The loan from LEAF will be used to support equipment and leasehold improvements for the new space, as well as any other financial expenses that may need to be made during the co-op’s transition year to its new space.
