Northwestern Family Supply Company
Courtesy of the Florida Memory Project
The Northwestern Family Supply Company (NFSC) had been the largest African American owned food operative in Baltimore, Maryland at the turn of the century. An African American butcher who rented space in the famed Lexington Market located in Baltimore, founded the cooperative. NFSC focused on the sale of groceries, meats, and other food related items. It had a capitalization of $50,000 and its stock sold for $5 and $10 per share. At its height, it had 2000 member stores around the city of Baltimore. The cooperative also had six or seven delivery wagons hauling goods across the city. At one time it had $10,000 in gross earnings and paid members 10% to 20% in dividends. If not for a lack of knowledge about how to successfully operate a cooperative business, there’s a chance that the NFSC would still be in operation today. Unfortunately, too many of the cooperative staff didn’t have the required knowledge and skills to successfully carry out their responsibilities as butchers, buyers, and store managers. It’s surprising that the store stayed in business for two years.
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