MEC was founded in 1971 by four University of British Columbia students who wanted to make outdoor gear more accessible in Vancouver. They started the cooperative with $65 and six members. MEC has since grown to over 3.5 million members and $300 million in annual sales across 16 Canadian stores. Key to MEC's success has been its commitment to high-quality, durable gear; sustainability; and reinvesting profits into the outdoor community through grants and initiatives. After 50 years, MEC remains member-owned and dedicated to supporting an active lifestyle.

1. May 2013 • ENTERPRISE 19
M
any are the great dreams and schemes
concocted by Canadians holed up in storm-
battered tents. Very few of these “big ideas”
survive the night, let alone the available sup-
ply of recreational consumables. Fewer still
materializeintoenterprisesremotelycomparabletoMountain
Equipment Co-op, the Canadian cooperative empire that
now boasts some three and a half million members and over
$300 million in annual retail sales. But then again, MEC was
never an ordinary dream. . To members of Canada’s climbing
scene, the story of MEC’s humble beginnings is the stuff of
legend, a tale of starry-eyed idealism and youthful pluck that
began in a small tent at the base of Mount Baker, the glacier-
capped, Washington State volcano visible on the inland hori-
zon from Vancouver to Victoria, and as far away as Seattle.
The spirit of cooperation powers MEC’s success
by N atalie B ruck ner-M enchelli
Photograph by Rich Wheater
Scaling
New
Heights

2. still be competitive in the Greater Vancouver
market. “Kudos to REI for helping MEC in
our early years by wholesaling some goods to
us,” says Golling, with a nod to the sixth prin-
ciple of cooperatives, Co-operation Among
Cooperatives.
Another MEC founder, Rob Brusse, adds
that from its earliest days MEC was closely
aligned with the cooperative movement. He
says MEC offered rebates to members based
on their annual purchases, minimizing not
only operating costs, but also non-essential
surpluses and related taxes. “MEC was also
strongly supported by the B.C. Central Credit
Union [now Central 1] — our lender of the
early years.”
Today, there are very few households in
Canada (and much of the States, for that
matter) that can’t produce a MEC backpack or
all-weather jacket from the hallway closet, and
the organization itself does a bustling trade
in product lines as varied as cycling, yoga,
Itwasthesummerof1970,andfouryoung
climbersfromtheUniversityofB.C.werewaiting
outanunseasonalstorm.Thediscussionturned
tokit,andwhyitwasclimbersinBritishColum-
biahadtotravelallthewaydowntoRecreational
Equipment Inc. (REI) in Seattle (see sidebar)
to purchase their mountaineering gear. It was
decided during that long weekend that some-
thing like REI was desperately needed in B.C.
“Some mountaineering gear was avail-
able but expensive in Vancouver at that
time,” explains Sara Golling, one of MEC’s
founding members. “The original idea was
simply to start something to fix that problem
— reduce the cost of going climbing so that
cash-strapped students could get out in the
mountains with good equipment.”
COOPERATIVE OR JOINT STOCK
COMPANY?
While the story of MEC’s origins often over-
shadows its business workings, the influence
that the cooperative model played on what
would become Canada’s largest member-
owned and controlled consumer cooperative
is just as noteworthy.
“Founding member Jim Byers was a well-
informed fan of the cooperative model,” says
Golling. “At least one of the other founding
members wanted the effort to be a joint stock
company, but since Jim was the only one with
the passion and the willingness to devote
the necessary time and energy to getting the
enterprise started, MEC became a co-op.”
And so it was agreed that the venture
would be a co-op that operated with low
markups alongside open, democratic, com-
munity-minded principles. The co-op was for-
mally incorporated in 1971 with six members
and $65 operating capital. In the early years,
Byers and his team worked closely with REI
in Seattle to get MEC up and running. With
a markup of 20 percent, the fledgling co-op
could buy wholesale, cover import duties and
Courtesy MEC20 ENTERPRISE • May 2013
MEC has expanded
to 16 stores across
Canada, including this
25,000-square-foot,
C2000 Green Building
Certified outlet in
Ottawa.

3. bershaveaccesstoinformationandeducation
thathelpsthemparticipatesafelyinoutdoor
activitieswhileinitiativeslikeTheBigWild
(foundedbyMECandtheCanadianParksand
WildernessSociety)bringpoliticalwilltobear
ontheplightofCanada’sbackcountry,parks
andpubliclandsasresourceanddevelopment
pressurescontinuetofindtraction.
A CELEBRATED ASCENT
Thefuturefortheco-op,accordingtoallthose
involved,isbright.LastyearMECsawa12.3
percentincreaseinproductsales,from$270
millionin2011to$301.7million(unaudited)in
2012.Despiteitsmanysuccesses,MECcontin-
uestofaceitsshareofchallenges.Whileincreas-
ingmarketcompetitionremainsaconstant
concern,GollingsaysMECisalsofacingaflag-
ginginterestinthegreatoutdoorsbyitslargest
(andfounding)demographic—BabyBoomers,
whotendtogeardownastheygrowold.
Irvine, however, envisions a bright (if
different) future for the enduring co-op born
on Baker. He sees MEC stores becoming hubs
of outdoor activity, offering outings, clinics,
events, education and expertise alongside top-
quality gear. For his part, Scott sees a future-
MEC continuing to build on member inter-
ests somewhat closer to home. “MEC remains
dedicated to offering quality products for
backcountry activity but has also expanded to
support members in all their ‘front country’
outdoor activities such as running, cycling,
yoga and travel,” he says. “This is a big step
in helping Canadians lead happy, healthy life-
styles and MEC is proud to show leadership
in making this possible.”
From humble, hippie beginnings to a
continent-spanning organization that has
risen to challenges, adapted to change and
built a firm foundation for the future, Moun-
tain Equipment Co-op remains a Canadian
cooperative superpower whose full legacy
is yet to be written.
May 2013 • ENTERPRISE 23
products,” says Scott.
In addition, MEC believes in testing its gear
in the field and giving fabrics and materials
what MEC describes as “a real-world thrash-
ing.” This includes setting up the tents in
severe storms and throwing wetsuits into the
pounding surf to test the durability of the
component materials.
“The collective learnings from our testing
program over the many years have given us the
ability to not only search out and assess the
best in technologies, but better understand
where quality in the details is of equal impor-
tance,” says Scott, adding MEC also encour-
ages members to share product feedback via
the review-and-rating system now available
on mec.ca.
SURVIVAL IN A COMPETITIVE
MARKET
While competition in the sports and recreation
retail sector remains stiff, MEC has managed
to weather the storm. Golling says new and
increasing competition has pushed MEC to
become stronger and has inspired the co-op to
further improve in all aspects of its business.
John Irvine, director of sports market-
ing, believes MEC is successful because it
listens and responds to its members. “This
(ensures) that our product assortment
and services offering reflects the needs of
Canadians who are leading active lives in the
outdoors,” he says.
Irvine says that while MEC is anchored in
traditional outdoor retail, and will remain
anchored there, the organization continues
to display a knack for timely adaptation, as it
demonstrated with its early adoption of yoga,
cycling and running product lines. Irvine
describes today’s store-based strategy as one
that “includes races, clinics and workshops to
inspire, educate, and to provide staff expertise
in these activities, while helping members see
MEC as a one-stop-shop for all their outdoor
activity needs.”
MEC has always considered strategic
partnershipsacrucialpartofitscommitment
tosupportingtheoutdoorsportscommunity.
GollingsaysthatpartnersliketheCanadian
AvalancheCentrehelpMECensureitsmem-
running and fitness, hiking and camping,
snow sports and watersports. But Golling says
back in the early days, “even mere survival was
in question for a while.”
CORE VALUES
Foritsfirstthreeyears,volunteersranthe
co-op.Therewerenopaidemployeesuntilthe
businesswaslargeenoughtosupportastore
withregularhoursandtokeepgearonthe
shelves.Butfast-forwardfourdecadesandMEC
hasexpandedto16destinationstoresinsix
provinces,some1,500employeesandaproduct
offeringthatcontinuestogrowandevolve
alongsidechanginglifestylesacrossCanada.
Andallofthiswasachievednotthroughglitzy
advertisingcampaigns,butthroughwordof
mouth and a twice-yearly catalogue.
While competitive prices, high-quality
goods and fair labour practices remain
cornerstones of the organization’s business
ethos, the paper catalogue has since been
usurped by a website. “We opted to put more of
our resources into the website and not to do a
paper catalogue anymore, and to compensate
somewhat for the lack of paper catalogue by
increasing our advertising,” explains Golling.
The move from paper to pixels dovetailed
perfectly with MEC’s longstanding sustain-
ability focus. “Initially, the focus was on
getting goods for members and keeping prices
low,” says Golling. “Sustainability, and by that
term I’m referring to concern for environmen-
tal protection, did not become a focus until
the mid-1980s. Then corporate social respon-
sibility — concern for fair trade practices, fair
labour practices and less harmful materials
and manufacturing processes — became a
focus as well.”
Since the mid 1980s, the co-op has con-
tributed more than $19 million in community
grants toward outdoor recreation and envi-
ronmental conservation projects. In 1987 it
created The Environment Fund and donated
money to the Federation of Mountain Clubs
of BC to help preserve a popular climbing
area called Smoke Bluffs in Squamish, B.C.
In 1993, MEC established the Endowment
Fund for the Environment. Income from
this fund helps finance MEC’s Land Acquisi-
tion grant program, which in turn supports
organizations dedicated to conserving areas
of ecological and recreational significance.
The outdoor sporting goods retailer has even
stepped in to help mop up oil spills, mobi-
lizing its staff for the clean-up of the 1989
Nestucca barge oil spill off Gray’s Harbour,
Wash., when an 87,400-litre slick was pushed
up along the west coast of Vancouver Island
by the prevailing winter winds.
TESTING, TESTING, 1-2-3
While ecological responsibility remains at the
core of MEC’s philosophy, the co-op attributes
much of its success to an unwavering focus on
the integrity of the MEC brand. And under-
pinning that integrity is the rugged, lasting
durability of MEC merchandise.
Greg Scott, MEC’s director of product integ-
rity, says MEC has a comprehensive materials
and product testing program run by materi-
als analysis engineer John Shen at its head
office on West 4th Avenue in the False Creek
Flats area of Vancouver, as well as field testers
across Canada managed by product field test-
ing coordinator Gord Betenia.
“The materials and product testing pro-
gram has been, and continues to be, an essen-
tial cornerstone of MEC’s success in support
of our commitment to our membership to
consistently deliver first-quality performance
22 ENTERPRISE • May 2013
Facts about MEC membership
.Anyone can join MEC by buying a $5 mem-
bership share (called a subscription share). It
allows you to purchase goods and vote on how
the co-op is governed. The cost has remained
the same since 1971.
.Members must be at least 16 years old and
own at least one share (shares are unlimited).
.At the end of the year, any surplus profit is
returned to members in the form of patronage
shares. — Courtesy of MEC
MEC Governance
.MEC is classified as a first-tier cooperative,
meaning that the cooperative provides services
directly to members, and to members only.
.There are nine directors on the board, with
an annual election. In each election, three
directors must be elected. The term of a
director is three years.
.At least one director must be a resident
of B.C.
Recreational Equipment Inc.
.REI was founded as a cooperative
in Seattle, in 1938 by Pacific Northwest
mountaineer Lloyd Anderson and his
wife, Mary.
.REI has more than 3.5 million active
members and is governed by a board of
13 directors, one member being the CEO.
Directors serve terms of one or three years.
.REI members pay $20 for a lifetime
membership to join and receive a portion of
the cooperative’s profits each year based on
a percentage of their eligible purchases.
.Every March, active REI members receive
their member refund in the form of an
annual dividend notice. — Courtesy of REI