Front doors of the West Chester Cooperative, located at 142 East Market Street. Photo credit courtesy of @westchestercooperative via Instagram.
The West Chester Cooperative, a growing community grocery store, established in 2015, has recently gained the attention of many community members and leaders, becoming recognized as an influential and developing aspect of the area. Working to serve the public by providing organic, sustainable, and locally sourced food as well as opportunities to make the area a more equitable place, the Co-op has established itself in West Chester as a unique and essential business.
Currently, the storefront is located at 142 East Market Street and operates from 3-7 on Tuesdays. Products at the store rotate frequently, however they always offer a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, coffee, meat, grains and dairy products. Though right now their hours and offerings may be limited because they are still expanding, the Co-op has big expectations for the future.
“Ideally what we want it to be is a vibrant community hub where people can come together. It will be open seven days a week, we’ll provide prepared and cook-at-home food, and we’ll have different classes and events,” said Renee Ryan, President of the West Chester Cooperative since September of this year. Ryan works alongside a board of nine other members, of whom work to make decisions that will increase the Co-op’s presence in the area.
What makes a Co-op different from other businesses is the way it gives residents the opportunity to directly impact the actions and influence of the organization. Community members can buy memberships and become “Member Owners,” enabling them to own a stake in the Cooperative and to vote in elections of the Cooperative’s board.
As of right now, the Co-op has a total of 554 Member Owners, and hopes to only increase that number. To take part, a membership costs $400 total, and can be paid in three different flexible payment options.
Unlike other stores, the West Chester Cooperative did not experience intense hardships and challenges because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Whereas larger chain stores, like Giant, outsource many food products and therefore suffered when supply chain issues abounded because of the pandemic, the Co-op does not.
“With a community owned grocery store we focus a lot on the local supply chains, getting food from local farmers and supporting local artisans and other producers,” said Ryan.
However, one challenge that they did face was finding new ways to continue holding community outreach events. Prior to the start of the pandemic, the Co-op had begun holding meet-and-greet events, which included renting out spaces in local West Chester restaurants and inviting community members to come and learn about what a Co-op is and what services it provides with raffles and other activities. Due to COVID-19, they were unable to hold events such as these in-person, instead turning to online versions.
During this time, the organization also developed “Go-Boxes.” This alternative to in-person grocery shopping ensured the safety and health of customers by having people select which foods they would like to purchase online and then being able to pick up their selections in store on the following Tuesday.
Moving forward, Ryan and her team of board members have high hopes for the Co-op and its possibilities. In the future they hope to expand their grocery inventory, open a fully functioning community grocery store, and they aim to reach 600 member owners by the end of 2021.
“I truly hope before my presidency is up, that we are looking for our new location and we are securing financing to renovate that location,” she said. “We would love for everyone in the West Chester area, including college students and year-round residents, to know who we are and what we’re trying to accomplish.”
Olivia Schlinkman is a first-year Psychology major. OS969352@wcupa.edu