About

CO-OP Dayton

Co-op Dayton is a non-profit organization founded in 2016 to develop cooperative businesses that meet community needs:

Whether that’s access to fresh groceries or to quality job opportunities.

The Cooperative Model

We believe that the cooperative model of community and worker ownership can transform Dayton’s Black and working class neighborhoods by rooting jobs and businesses locally.

Cooperatives mean jobs with greater dignity and opportunities for workers to build wealth through their contributions to the business.  

And cooperatives mean businesses with greater accountability to the people that live and work here.

A Just Local Economy

We are inspired by the principles and structure of the Mondragon Corporation, the largest and most successful cooperative network in the world, based in Spain’s northern Basque region.  

By bringing Mondragon’s resilient model to Dayton, Ohio, we are developing a network of local cooperative businesses, growing our economy and creating wealth from the ground up.

And through deep community organizing, and democratic cooperative governance, we are building the movement locally for a just economy that meets our core economic needs for quality products and services, safe and affordable housing, and dignified, family-sustaining jobs.

Our Work

We are accomplishing our mission by educating and organizing our community around the cooperative movement for a just economy and by providing resources and services to support both startup cooperative businesses and cooperative transitions for existing businesses.

Learn more from our staff, Kenya Baker and Lela Klein: