Plans for a new co-op market in Winchester began last year, and it’s currently in the first stage of development. The goal is to build a full-service, community-owned grocery store where people can shop even if they’re not a member. WMRA's Ayse Pirge reports.
A co-op -- short for cooperative -- is when people come together to serve a common need through organizing and managing a company to meet that need. There are different types of co-ops, and they’re most common in agriculture, insurance, utilities – and the grocery industry.
Bertha Thomas is the president of Winchester Co-op Market. She says the goal is to build a service owned by the community, so if you buy a share in the co-op, you’re an owner.
BERTHA THOMAS: And so, instead of being owned by a big company... the profits would be reinvested in the community and reinvested in the co-op. And so that’s the model that we’re following.
Thomas says their mission is to focus on sustainable practices and support local farmers and local producers. The idea is to supplement a robust list of suppliers in the area with other distributors for supplies such as canned goods and bulk items.
THOMAS: We have a 150-mile radius of like how far we want to go for suppliers. So, we won’t be just in Winchester. Like it’ll be 150 miles from Winchester that we’ll get suppliers.
She says it’s meant to be more than a grocery store.
THOMAS: The co-op itself, it’s the people and, you know, the store it’s just a result of those people organizing, wanting to support the community.
The co-op has a working board of eight members and recently launched its membership campaign, which means they can start fundraising in order to begin the next stage of organizing. Thomas says they want to put people over profits and support the community.
