Behind the bright, lime green doors lie colorful shelves stocked with local and natural products and foods. The space may be small, but the purpose of this cooperative is beyond measurement.
Citizen’s Co-op provides the newest spot to pick up fresh goods from local farmers and businesses. Gainesville’s only food cooperative welcomes shoppers and producers into its one-year-old store, a vibrant addition to a downtown district that continues to grow and evolve.
“We created the co-op with a lot of grand visions for the future of food in the area,” said Gretchen McIntyre, co-founder of Citizens Co-op. “We wanted the community to have greater access to good, local food and to create a great space that values transparency and teaching people what goes into making their food.”
Before opening the store in Gainesville, McIntyre and her board researched successful co-ops across the country and state. They found that the best ones all had two things: a strong pride in their communities and a range of products that could rival a chain grocery store. The board new its business would showcase the best Alachua had to offer, but the product selection would rely on the member’s wants.
The co-op model revolves around its members – part owners, part consumers, they are the engine that keeps the store moving forward. Members don’t just get deals and specials, they get a say on what fills the shelves in the store.
“Our members are our most important asset,” McIntyre said. “They determine where and how we grow.”
Located off South Main Street, the 1,800-square-foot store is home to some of the town’s most forward-thinking producers and farmers who want to bring sustainable options to the community, while keeping money in the local economy. With a “local first policy,” the co-op prioritizes purchases from local producers and vendors.
Organic, kosher and grass-fed may be buzzwords elsewhere, but they are a mission for the staff and volunteers who work seven days a week to keep the full-service grocery store open.
Citizen Co-op’s Produce Manager James Steele came to the store after spending more than 20 years as a wholesale herb grower. As a partcipant with Sustainable Alachua County and a chef and founder of Gainesville Farm Fresh (an online resource that educates the community about locally grown and raised products) Steele has his fair share of experience in the food industry.
“Our key mission is to create food security in the community by supporting local growers and producers,” Steele said. “The store is really like a brick-and-mortar farmers market.”
A year into operation, the store is getting bigger, both in membership and selection. The neatly arranged aisles tout everything from cake mix to yogurt to all-natural soda. Before the co-op opened, it had 800 members signed up to supoprt and help run it. The number has continued to rise each month, and its current membership is 1, 300-people strong.
As the summer season heats up, Steele works from 6 a.m. until the late afternoon to organize deliveries of berries, melons, corn, tomatoes and other seasonal staples. It can be a challenge to fill some members’ requests if a product cannot be produced locally, but Steele works to source everything in the store from the closest possible locations.
Aside from selling regular grocery items in teh store, the co-op also plays host to a Sunday market in its back courtyard each week. The market brings in smaller vendors, food demonstrations and a live band to attract a diverse crowd of locals. The board is always working on ways to help educate the community about the true cost of food and the value of obtaining it locally, Steele said.
Classes and demonstrations have been offered with focuses on grass-fed beef, bee keeping and growing herbs, and committees are planning to host more teaching and social events on the back patio for both consumers and growers, Steele said.
The big question of “What’s next for the co-op?” keeps members and staff excited to push the store to achieve its fullest potential. The business continues to build its presence and impact in the community through word of mouth and local events like the Kanapaha Botanical Gardens Festival and the downtown Gainesville Union Street Farmers Market.
“At times we get so bogged down in the numbers of keeping the store in business, it can be easy to overlook what we’re doing.” McIntyre said. “We are proud of the quality of life we are providing to the community. The value we are creating here is priceless.”
To learn more, visit www.CitizensCo-Op.com