Members of Mountain Equipment Co-op, Canada's largest consumer co-operative, are mobilizing in reaction to news that the iconic outdoor brand is on the cusp of being acquired by a U.S. investment firm.
Citing disappointment and betrayal, members of Mountain Equipment Co-op, Canada's largest consumer co-operative, are mobilizing in reaction to news that the iconic outdoor brand is on the cusp of being acquired by a U.S. investment firm. On Monday, the board of directors announced it had unanimously approved a deal for Kingswood Capital Management, an Los Angeles-based private investor to acquire MEC's assets, including the majority of its retail stores. At the end of the deal, MEC will be a privately owned company. The deal, which is proceeding under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, comes after years of financial struggle for the retailer. But some of the co-op's members, who total over five million across Canada, are not pleased with the direction of the Vancouver-based co-operative. Sara Golling is one of the founders of Mountain Equipment Co-op. She says the organization's early co-operative values have been lost to standard retail practises. (Submitted by Sara Golling) Michael Roy, who joined the co-op as a high school student, has started a petition which has garnered more than 10,000 signatures in the past 24 hours. Roy says the…