Community Leaders in the West End have been working for years to try and attract a regional or national grocer to locate within the West End. Due to concerns with demand and fiscal sustainability, no major grocers are willing to bite. This has not deterred us from exploring other solutions to solving the problem of bringing food and other groceries into our West End food Desert, so we have decided to pivot and are now exploring the viability of opening a grocery Co-op in the West End. We have partnered with leaders from Weaver Street Market located in the Raleigh-Durham area to help educate us on the Grocery co-op model. This is an exciting prospect to bring fresh food and groceries to our neighborhood, but we’re in the very early stages of this journey. This co-op model is entirely dependent on the community in which it is located. It is designed to have members of the community become owners, operators and shoppers. Unlike a large grocery chain who uses private investment to operate the store and retains the earnings, the co-op model relies on local investment and local shoppers, and then turns the profits around to invest right back into the business, employees, and community. We’re excited about this opportunity, and we will need your feedback and support to make it happen.

There are a few ways you can get educated on this opportunity:
Explore the Weaver Street Market website, including ownership structure and more
Mark your calendars for a community field trip to Weaver Street Market on a Saturday in July (exact date and more details coming soon)
Email us with your feedback! Since a co-op is community driven, your feedback early in this process is critical!