Can transparency save the small indie business?

Recapturing lost notes: Please pardon my shorthand. I first saved this as a calendar entry in Outlook. I later opened it, added more, and hit ctl-S. Accidentally bridging the S and the D, which disastrously are side-by-side, I deleted twenty minutes worth of typing, not to mention some inspired original thinking, only partially recaptured here.

Can transparency save the small indie business? Much of our wonderful local "health food" store Martindale's stuff is horrendously expensive, compared to most other sources. Why? Is it all lack of buying leverage, or are lack of savvy, energy, or funding also factors? How do they get and implement Best of Class food and health solutions for their customers?

If I knew why M'dls stuff costs so much more than Trader Joes, I mt decide to shop there and pay more anyway. I mt also thk of ways to help them bring thr costs down, that they hvn't tht of.

Mdl's web site appears to be run by Healthy Living. What else does HL do for them? What if HL merged w a regnl or nat'l coop suptg indie biz's w kind of svcs TJs provs thr stores?
TJs appeal is more than price: it's fun, atmosphere, worker QOL, and more.

Energy example: SunEdison has the scale and track record to offer pay-as-you-go solar energy to billion dollar-plus firms. Aside from the advantage of a predictable, no-upfront-cost expense, what do they do that indie solar firms could do, given the help of a large coop?

more to come...