40 million people in the U.S. belong to one of these. Over 100 million people hold membership with this. Enjoy the outdoors? Chances are, you’ve purchased from the largest of its kind in America.

What do these mysterious organizations have in common? They are all cooperatives. The first? Electric co-ops, where members own the entire distribution network. The second you should recognize: Credit unions! Finally, that last one is a bit surprising…REI, the outfitters, and the largest consumer cooperative in the country.

Besides being interesting factoids for your next trivia competition, how can this knowledge help?

Before answering, let’s take a step back. A few weeks back, I spoke with staff at CU Social Good, where they are collecting hard data of credit unions’ positive impacts on their communities. They lamented the challenges in getting them to “brag” about their accomplishments, which is why they’ve created a site doing just that. Remember, credit unions don’t like to talk about their community efforts. What can I say, they’re modest! However, it was not lost on anyone at CU Social Good that there was significant value going unrecognized.

Filene Research Institute set out to understand the situation. They conducted a study on co-op partnerships. Yes, cooperatives cooperating. Turns out, there’s opportunity to be had!

You can read the major results of the study on Filene’s site (it’s well-worth the read), but here’s the gist: Credit unions can grow by working with other cooperatives. In fact, it is the primary differentiator they can embrace between themselves and for-profit banks. The possibilities are significant (my examples):

  • Working with a food co-op to offer members an easy place to pick up their weekly produce (and encourage to join the CU)
  • Helping finance the startup costs involved with a housing initiative aimed at putting dry roofs over more residents
  • Provide additional savings for your electic co-op as a member paying through your CU account
  • And much more

Each of these organizations is focused on something beyond the bottom line and the membership is the barometer of their success. Imagine if each worked together to expand their own initiatives while promoting their fellow organization!

We truly have not even scratched the surface of what co-ops working together can produce. I look forward to the continued partnerships and cross-pollination between organizations.

Once again, take a look at the study by the Filene Research Institute (full report is available for all member credit unions and staff) and brainstorm how your credit union can grow while helping other co-ops!

Disclosure: I am a credit union member. My family owns property serviced by an electric co-op. I’m a fan of both.

Image credit: https://ravereader.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/endor_celebration.jpg