About MEC

We're a group of people (3.6 million members) who love to play outside.

We exist to inspire and enable people to live active lifestyles. As an outdoor retail co-operative, Mountain Equipment Co-op makes and sells great gear at prices that don't break the budget, to support our members in being active outdoors. We do this in a way that does the least harm and the most good – environmentally, socially, and economically – today and in the future.

We've been told that we're "different." And we like it that way. Our roots lie in the adventures of a few young climbers who, just over 40 years ago, decided to take matters into their own hands to bring quality outdoor gear to Canada. They were serious about play – not profits – same as we are today.

MEC Today

Today, we embrace the same adventurous spirit (although we've gone beyond operating out of the back of a borrowed van). By Canadian standards, we're a large retail co-operative and brand though small compared to other retailers in our market.

It's an interesting time to be an outdoor gear retailer and manufacturer. We're experiencing significant changes in our membership, recreation patterns, urbanization, and technology. We're also seeing increased demands for sustainability leadership and transparency, which is often hard to align with challenging supply chain realities. To keep us on course, we draw inspiration from our enterprising and co-operative roots, and keep our focus on our mandate to members.

Our Foundation

The foundation of our business is based on the International Co-operative Alliance's seven principles. Our approach to social and environmental responsibility is also guided by these principles, as well as the Global Compact (adopted in 2006), and International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions.

Our Charter, Values, and Goals

We help people enjoy the benefits of self-propelled active outdoor recreation by providing equipment, services, and expertise. We're guided by our values: adventure, creativity, quality, integrity, leadership, co-operation, humanity, stewardship, and sustainability. Read our MEC Charter.

While we're not the biggest retailer, we're inspired by big visions. On top of inspiring active lifestyles, meeting member needs and keeping the Co-op strong and financially viable, MEC has three visionary goals:

1. Activity: Increase participation in activity and outdoor recreation in Canada
2. Conservation: Support the creation and stewardship of parks and wild spaces, as well as front country and urban places, that have recreation and environmental value
3. Marketplace: Foster change toward environmental, social, and economic sustainability in the marketplace

Our Stakeholders

We believe we have a responsibility to listen to and consider the concerns of people we affect, who affect us, or who need us to act. We're not always able to do what they want, but we give every idea a fair hearing.

Our primary stakeholders are members and employees. Other important stakeholders are suppliers, outdoor industry peers and retailers, advocacy and interest groups (conservation, environment, outdoor recreation, and human rights), and co-operative associations. These are the people or groups most affected by our actions, or who have the greatest potential to affect MEC. They were identified through an internal stakeholder analysis process, in which we created a list of stakeholders, identified their issues and interests, then mapped the primary stakeholders groups.

We get feedback from members through surveys, in-store comments, letters, and emails. They express views on product quality, availability, fit, prices, and sustainability practices. Employees are also critical to our success, and we engage with them on an ongoing basis: in person, on email, and through our Intranet and employee surveys.

Community and interest groups often come to us. They're interested in recreation access, environmental and conservation issues, and human rights. We also sit on numerous boards (e.g., The Co-operators and the Outdoor Industry Association), participate in a range of groups, and establish partnerships. Our outdoor retail peers and suppliers are in constant business contact. In addition, we create opportunities for input through issue-specific workshops and other channels. We focus on open, strong communication, so we can be proactive and support the people and issues we care about.

We sought representatives from these stakeholder groups to help us prioritize material issues and serve on the Stakeholder Panel Review for this report. We based our assessment of priority sustainability issues on the perspectives of these stakeholders.

Awards We've Received

In the past few years, we received a number of awards for our efforts to be a progressive and accountable organization. MEC was rated first in the 2010 Best 50 Corporate Citizens by Corporate Knights. We were also ranked one of Canada's top 100 employers for 2011 and 2012, with distinctions as one of Canada's Greenest Employers, as well as Family Friendly Employers. And the Financial Post ranked us as a Top Ten Company to work for.