If wealth is power, then cooperative economics hands that power back to communities. I may only own one small business enterprise, but my approach to hiring subcontractors and vendors is rooted in intentional economic uplift. Whenever possible, I purposefully hire Black contractors, vendors, suppliers, and consultants because I believe in spreading opportunity, circulating Black dollars, and contributing to the long-term strength of the community where I live. This is not an act of charity, but a deliberate, strategic choice
While I cannot single-handedly prevent gentrification, I recognize that it is fueled by a complex interaction of economic, social, and policy forces that make historically underinvested neighborhoods (like Seattle’s Central District), more attractive to higher-income residents and investors. As taxes, costs, and property values escalate beyond what long-standing residents can reasonably sustain, displacement (gentrification) becomes an ever-present risk. My commitment to hiring within the community is one small but meaningful way to counter these pressures by helping strengthen local economies, expand professional opportunities, and keep resources circulating where they are most needed.
Local organizations and directories list more than 150 Black-owned businesses across King County — proof that commercial talent and entrepreneurial spirit exist in abundance. The missing piece is scaling access to capital, shared infrastructure, and marketplaces that prioritize Black entrepreneurs and worker-owners. Cooperative models supply those missing links by democratizing ownership and decision-making while lowering costs through pooled resources.
Take credit unions as a concrete example. Unlike large banks, credit unions are member-owned, return earnings to members through better rates and services, and often commit to community-focused lending. When Black communities build and prioritize relationships with cooperative financial institutions, they reduce leakage of dollars and enable reinvestment into local businesses and housing.
What might a scaled cooperative ecosystem look like in Seattle? Imagine worker-owned cafes and tech co-ops that hire and train residents from the Central District and Rainier Beach; a cooperative grocery buying club that lowers food costs while supporting Black farmers. While there are no Black-owned or majority-Black–owned banks or credit unions in Washington state that can provide loans to startups that traditional lenders routinely overlook, Seattle is home to a community land trust that works to secure commercial corridors for Black businesses. Each spoke in the wheel strengthens the others — buying power fuels businesses, businesses create jobs, and local financial institutions keep capital circulating. Together they form an economic circulatory system rather than a series of one-way drains.
Across the country, cooperative enterprises have increased income stability, narrowed wealth gaps at local levels, and built businesses that survive and thrive because ownership is shared. For Seattle, the opportunity is to catalyze cooperative growth strategically: municipal procurement policies that favor co-ops and WMBE-certified co-op vendors; nonprofit incubators that offer wraparound business and governance training for worker-owners; and anchor institution partnerships to steer procurement dollars toward community-owned enterprises.
If you care about Black economic power in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, cooperative economics should move from idea to policy to practice. Buy from collectively owned businesses. Encourage local leaders to fund cooperative incubators and community land trusts. Small daily choices — where we bank, where we shop, who we hire — compound into generational wealth when they’re directed through cooperative channels. Cooperative economics may not be a silver bullet, but it is one of the clearest, most practical strategies we have to translate community potential into lasting prosperity.
Pamela J. Oakes is the owner and managing director of The Profitable Nonprofit, a global business development company for purpose-driven, mission-minded, socially innovative do-gooders dedicated to changing the world.
