Mel Braverman
Phone: 608-243-3255
Fax: 608-243-3255
MelBraverman@cdsconsulting.coop

Madison, WI

Mel Braverman has 20 years of experience in food cooperatives, including 14 years as a general manager of retail and wholesale natural food cooperatives at Willy St. Co-op, Magic Mill and North Farm. He has a wide range of skills in retail store operations, strategic, business, and financial planning, expansion planning, and management team development.

• Management Training & Mentoring (department managers and general managers)
• Margin Workshops
• CoCoFiSt Workshops
• Improving operational performance
• Business Planning (process and document)
• Facilitate Management Team Retreats

Operational Improvements

• Margin enhancement
• Labor controls
• Merchandising assessment and improvement suggestions
• Systems (ordering, stocking, receiving, etc.) assessment and improvement suggestions
• Operational audit
• Department manager goal setting and monitoring
• Management Team assessment and improvement work plan

Mel will work with your co-op to strengthen systems and management expertise. His approach is very hands-on and includes significant follow up support.

“I can’t begin to express my gratitude and appreciation for the wealth of information, suggestions and feedback from Mel Braverman’s site visit. He was thorough in his search for margin erosion while gaining the respect and excitement from myself and my entire staff. “

—Meg Torrence, East Store Manager
Bloomingfoods Market & Deli

“If you need a consultant or management training, Mel’s your man. He did a great job at our store helping us improve margins, create useful evaluations, and on labor control. He did everything we needed him to do and more.”

—Michele Adams, General Manager
First Alternative Co-op, Corvallis, Oregon

Articles on this site

• Revisit Retail Basics in Hard Times
  (July-August 2009, Volume 9, Number 4)
• Close the Gap with CoCoGap
  (January-February 2009, Volume 9, Number 1)
• Go from Good to Great—Develop Tomorrow’s Leaders
  (June 2005: Volume 5, No. 3)
• First Year in Expanded Store: Homing in on Success
  (March 2005: Volume 5, No. 2)
• Case Study - Tidal Creek Expansion
  (March 2005: Volume 5, No. 2)
• Focus on Vision Expands Small Co-op Possibilities
  (Winter 2005: Volume 5, No. 1)
• Case Study - Operational Rehab Allows Co-op to Thrive Again
  (Spring 2004: Volume 4, No. 2)
• Impressive Financial Improvement Using CoCoGap
  (Winter 2004: Volume 4, No. 1)
• Margin Management Workshop
  (Spring 2003: Volume 3, No. 2)
• Empowerment + Accountability = Success (and Fun)
  (Winter 2003: Volume 3, No. 1)
• Even More Resources Available for CoCoFiSt Users
  (Spring 2002: Volume 2, No. 3)
• A Round-Robin Discussion with CDS Consultants: Talking Co-op
  (Fall 2001: Volume 2, No. 1)
• Improving Operational Performance Creating a Culture of Accountability
  (Summer 2001: Volume 1, No. 4)
• Using CoCoFiSt for Developing Targeted Improvements
  (Winter 2001: Volume 1, No. 2)

Articles not on this site

Staying Healthy in an Unhealthy Economy. Mel Braverman.Cooperative Grocer.#142. May-June 2009.

Managing Key Indicators. Mel Braverman.Cooperative Grocer.#137. July-August 2008.

Closing the ‘Gap’. Mel Braverman. Cooperative Grocer. #126. September-October 2006.

Small Town Success from Building Membership. Mel Braverman. Cooperative Grocer. #114. September-October 2004.

Get Down, Get Ahead: Driving Operational Improvements Using CoCoFiSt. Mel Braverman. Cooperative Grocer. #112. May-June 2004.

Operational Improvement and You. Mel Braverman. Cooperative Grocer. #104. January-February 2003.

CoCoFiSt Tools Boost Southeast Co-ops. Mel Braverman.Cooperative Grocer. #94. May-June

Building Accountability. Mel Braverman. Cooperative Grocer. #85. November-December 1999.