Saturday November 30, 2024 / 4:03 pm | VICTORIA, BC [Updated December 1, 2024]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Peninsula Co-op members who buy gas and other goods at Peninsula Co-op stores and service stations — with the promise of an annual year-end rebate — will this year have to wait a little bit longer for the 2024 payout.
That’s due to the Canada Post worker strike. The rebate cheques now being held in storage at an “off-site secure facility… until Canada Post resumes service and catches up on any backlog”.
Even if the Canada Post backlog were to start getting sorted and delivered in the next few days, it could take several weeks for the backlog to be dealt with, as Canada Post has said in media interviews.
Relying on snail mail:
Peninsula Co-op says they have no other way to distribute rebates to 120,000 members across 30 locations.
Peninsula Co-op is a mid-size business that still relies on Canada Post. If they were to set up for e-transfer or electronic file transfer (EFT) they wouldn’t need to be relying on Canada Post in times like this.
“We’re a business built to support our community and meet the needs of our members,” says the Peninsula Co-op website.
Membership-based business:
Peninsula Co-op is a Vancouver Island based co-operative with a core business in grocery, liquor, petroleum and convenience stores employing more than 470 full and part-time employees.
Anyone can buy fuel at their service stations on Vancouver Island. They also have liquor stores and one grocery store.
The optional membership involves a one-time fee of $27.
Given their motto statement “Peninsula Co-op is a different kind of business. And that difference begins with membership,” they may now be thinking about membership service on the digital side of things.
“Each year, Peninsula Co-op may return a part of their profits back to members based on how much you shop with them and how well the business performs,” says Peninsula Co-op.
Donations to charities:
Peninsula Co-op holds some of their revenue as equity, which grows over time. On top of the member rebate, Peninsula Co-op donates roughly half a million dollars each year to local charities and organizations, as stated on their website.
===== RELATED:
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