Restore the Coop Rebate

Due to a net loss for the 1993-1994 year, the Harvard Cooperative Society's board of directors voted last week not to offer its members a rebate for last year's purchases. This decision marks the first time the store will not pay a refund since records have been kept. The year before, the Coop rebate fell to an all-time low of one percent.

The Coop has taken steps to soften the blow for student members, including a 10 percent discount on fall textbook purchases. Many students, in fact, will benefit more from this discount than from the now extincl rebate.

But despite the discount, Coop members should still be upset by the absence of a rebate. The reason is simple: the Coop is not just any other business. It's a "cooperative society," in operation not just to turn a profit but to give special benefits to its members. When members receive treatment no different from that of other customers, an implicit contract has been broken. While snazzy calendars and special discounts on Harvard wing chairs are nice, they're not enough.

"I've been a member since I was an undergraduate, and I still use the Coop," said Gerald H. Angoff '66. "One would think that the management would be true to its charter and give a return for a specialized status."

"It takes away the family feeling," said Coop member Richard N. Olans '66, of the decision to offer no rebate. "It turns it into just another store."

It's important to remember that not all Coop members are students. Many members are alumni or local residents, and are therefore not in the market for textbooks. Coop members like Olans and Angoff probably won't benefit from the 10 percent discount.

If the Coop can't improve its bottom line and the lack of a rebate becomes a regular occurrence, the Coop will cease to serve a valuable function to its members. The Coop has made some changes in order to increase its sales, and it must continue to make these changes if it hopes to prosper in the future and return to giving generous benefits to its members.