Write Us!
We welcome your comments and give each one attention and serious consideration. Send them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or fill out a Customer Comment form in the Owner Resources area. Each month a small selection is printed in the Reader; publication does not necessarily indicate an endorsement of views stated in a customer’s original comment. Many more comments can be found in the commons or in the binder near Customer Service. Thank you!
Round Up vs. Nothing
Q: I do not like having to choose between None and Round Up to Next Dollar to CHIP at the auto stations. I will be going to the humans to check out in the future where my Chip is the standard percentage of my bill.
A: Thanks for reaching out! You are correct, the self-checkouts do not currently reflect a 1% CHIP donation process, like we do at our staffed registers.
Unfortunately, our self-checkout system did not have the ability during rollout to provide that same experience, only a round up option. We made the decision to provide this option until a fix can be facilitated. We wanted to make sure those who used self-checkouts had some option to donate towards this cause versus none. We are working on hopefully getting that fix in this New Year.
Thank you so much for your donations to this wonderful program—we greatly appreciate it! Best,
Kristina Kuhaupt, Customer Experience Manager
Household Ownership?
Q: I might be interested in becoming an owner, but have a question first.
My adult son and I live in separate homes, but we often do our grocery shopping on the same trip. Would we qualify as a ‘household’ with co-owners, or would we need separate accounts? He might order groceries online for delivery to his home if he is not shopping at the same time as I am. I most often shop in-store and sometimes buy groceries for him. We would also, separately, be eligible for the Access discount.
A: Thank you for reaching out about Co-op Ownership! Because your son does not live with you and is over 18, our policy requires that you have separate Owner accounts. If you decide to sign up for Ownership I recommend doing it in person at one of our stores so that you can sign up for the Access Program simultaneously. This will allow you to make a lower equity payment towards your Ownership and have the admin fees waived. Please let me know if there is anything else I can help you with or if you have additional questions.
Have a great day! -Rosalyn Murphy, Owner Records Administrator
Love Letter
Q: I love Willy Street Coop! I discovered Sassy Cow milk and Wallaby Greek Style Yogurt at Willy West. You have a great selection of bulk spices as well as cereal, baking products, and so much more. Our fresh Thanksgiving Ferndale whole Turkey and breast were juicy and yielded fantastic gravy. I also love your housewares section. I could go on and on but thank you for being a fantastic store!
A: I received your comment about your recent visit with Willy Street Co-op in Middleton. We appreciate the kind words! We are so happy that you discovered Sassy Cow Milk and Wallaby Greek Style Yogurt (this is my favorite too!). Glad to hear that the Thanksgiving whole turkey and turkey breast were juicy! Our Ferndale turkey is a crowd pleaser for sure! It’s always great to hear positive comments from our customers. Thank you for supporting us! Sincerely, Frantseska Kois, Willy West Store Director
Dietary Labels for Hot Bar
Q: Label hot bar items, vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, etc... everyone else is doing it. People come here for meat-free options even if that’s not your target audience. We’re still here 1202 FOREVER.
A: Hi, thanks for writing in, and sending in a great suggestion. I will do an audit of our hot bar items and get these updated over the next few weeks, then have our Prepared Foods Managers reprint the ones with changes. Best regards, Nicholas OConnor, Prepared Foods & Cheese Category Manager
Stop In the Name of traffic
Q: Please consider posting larger stop signs outside the entrance to North. I often see drivers plow thru them without stopping and apparently not noticing the signs. Thanks.
A: Thanks for reaching out regarding the stop signs in our parking lot. I agree people drive too fast and right through the stop signs far too often. In an effort to prevent this from happening we have increased the number of stop signs in the front of the store, moved the stop signs to different locations, and painted a large crosswalk in front of our patio. Unfortunately, none of the changes have eliminated the problem completely. We will continue to work with the property owners to make our parking lot a safer space. Thanks again for writing in. -Jenny Skowronek, Willy North Store Director
Ready-to-Drink OJ
Q: I’ve been meaning to thank you for keeping the Natalie’s orange juice in a cooler. I know it is shipped frozen. In other stores I have to plan days ahead to buy it from a frozen case and thaw it in my own refrigerator. You usually have it in a thawed state. If not, it is close enough to thawed that I can buy it today for breakfast tomorrow. Thanks for paying attention to the little things. They add up.
A: We have it refrigerated for that exact reason! It’s really nice to hear that it is appreciated. I will pass that along to the team member who made that decision years ago. Thank you. -Jason Zabinski, Willy East Grocery Manager
No “Thank You”
Q: Super frustrated that check out staff doesn’t say “thank you.” I do customer service too. They are representing Willy Co-op, not doing me a favor. I spend a lot of money here, and expect a “thank-you.” “Have a good day” is cheery, but it doesn’t cut it. Thanks for listening!
A; Thanks for reaching out and sharing your frustrations. I am sorry that you did not feel your recent shopping experiences were appreciated. We very much appreciate all our Owners and their support for our business; we could not do it without you!
When checking out, cashiers are encouraged to end the transaction with their own personal positive ending. We encourage a thank you, but there are instances where, “have a good day,” fits the moment better depending on the flow of the transaction. We will take your feedback into further consideration. Thank you for your business!
In cooperation, Kristina Kuhaupt, Customer Experience Manager
Recycleable Coffee Bags?
Q: Are either of the two coffee bags (Coop or Equal Exchange) recyclable if the fasteners are removed?
A: I hope your week is going well! Thank you for your question! I checked in with the sources for both coffee bags about whether they are recyclable or not and it turns out that they are not. Both have a thin Mylar-like material to keep the contents fresh, so they are not recyclable unfortunately. Have an excellent week! -Dean Kallas, Grocery Category Manager
Card Not Accepted
Q: I am upset that I cannot use my prepaid Anthem benefits prepaid card - can we fix this?
A: Thank you for your comment regarding Prepaid Anthem Benefits Cards. We are not authorized to accept these cards since we do not have a pharmacy at any of our locations. We will be sure to look into this possibility if the pharmacy requirement is ever removed. Thanks, Paige Wickline, Finance Director
Staff Picks
Q: Please bring back employee picks in the newsletter.
A: Your request to bring back the Staff Picks in the newsletter was passed along to me. I would like to bring them back, but we will still need at least a few more months to redesign our method for gathering the picks from staff; the way we were doing it wasn’t sustainable, unfortunately. I appreciate you taking the time to share your interest in us returning to have Staff Picks in the newsletter—I totally agree! -Brendon Smith, Marketing & Communications Director
Low-Carb Options
Q: Thank you SO MUCH for getting Flackers, the low carb cracker. Now I can actually pick up a grab and go low carb meal option with Flackers and some cheese! This is a first! It would be extremely appreciated if you would always have at least one item on the hot bar and/or in the deli that is a low carb entree and could make a low carb meal. I think you’d be surprised at how many people eat low carb. Honestly I think the coop has an age bias in this regard - most health conscious people who are middle aged and older eat low carb (many being former vegans and vegetarians) whereas your selections are heavily weighted toward high carb vegan items. Please let there be BALANCE and provide readymade food for ALL of us, every day. Thank you.
A: Thanks for writing to us! I will definitely look at ways to improve our offerings with more low carb options, we have a few things we’re working on testing right now that if we can get it worked out will be right up your alley! Please let me know if you have any specific suggestions that you’d like to see! -Nicholas OConnor, Prepared Foods & Cheese Category Manager