My Three Favorite Online Sources for Positive Inspiration

Hello, I’m Lisa Nelson, founder and attorney at Positive Law, LLC in Ohio that advises mission-driven enterprises. I don’t know about you, but I like to start my day with positive news.  I like to learn about people up to good things in the world.   It gives me hope and inspiration. Here are my top […]

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Food Justice Campaigner Set to Open Coop Grocery Store

If you need a little inspiration today, let’s talk about a food justice campaigner in Detroit named Malik Yakitini. He is founder of the Detroit Black Food Security Network (DBCFSN), which operates a D-Town Farm, a 7-acre plot, and is getting set to launch a Coop-Grocery store this year.  Since 2016, Malik has been working […]

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What is a Consumer Cooperative and What Are the Advantages?

A consumer cooperative is an enterprise that is owned by its members who derive benefits from being a member.  Consumer coops may offer products or services, and this coop model can be utilized in Ohio by a wide range of business sectors.  Often consumer coops start to fill a need within a community.  For example, […]

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What is a Producer Co-op? What are the Advantages to Ohio Enterprises?

Producer cooperatives, sometimes known as marketing coops, are owned by people who offer similar types of goods or services.  Producer cooperatives are popular in Ohio among agricultural (i.e., farms) businesses, where it makes good business sense to pool resources to market products and get perishable goods to consumers efficiently.  Like purchasing coops, the owner-members of […]

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What is a Worker Cooperative?

A Worker Cooperative (also called a worker-owned or employee-owned cooperative (or coop) is a business that operates pursuant to a cooperative business model which prioritizes its employees and the communities it serves. Some characteristics of a worker cooperative include employees being owners (called “Members”) –that is they receive profits (or loses) from the business as […]

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What is a Purchasing Cooperative and What are its Advantages?

Purchasing cooperatives (also called Shared Services Cooperatives) in Ohio normally have members that are businesses or organizations, as opposed to individual consumers.  Members of purchasing coops come together to be able to purchase in bulk needs goods or supplies for their enterprises, as well as to share in the costs of marketing (or delivering) their […]

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What is a Cooperative Business Model?

If you are thinking of starting a business (whether for profit or nonprofit) in Ohio or have an existing business and are exploring options to retire but let your business live on, it is important that know about cooperative business models.  A cooperative or coop…

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Using “Coop”, Co-op”, or “Cooperative” in a Business Name in Ohio

First, let us be clear that the terms “Coop”, Co-op”, or “Cooperative” can be used interchangeably.  However, these terms are umbrella terms that do not necessarily imply the particular legal structure of the business to which they are attached.  For example, business and organizations sometimes use the term “coop” in their business name even though […]

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