At the grand opening of Fare & Square, in Chester, Pennsylvania, a celebratory street fair was accompanied by some daunting expectations. Would the underserved area’s first grocery store since 2001 be a success? Adding to the uncertainty was the revolutionary business model adopted by the enterprise: A fully owned subsidiary of Delaware Valley hunger relief organisation Philabundance, Fare & Square bills itself as the first nonprofit supermarket of its kind in the United States.
Indeed, a visit to the store reveals a selection of fresh produce, fresh meat and deli items rivaling that of any suburban supermarket, despite Fare & Square’s diminutive footprint (the store shares site space with an 8,000-square-foot Family Dollar). Shoppers pass through a discreet entrance on Trainer Street, lured by cheerful purple-and-green signage on 9th Street promising “good food right around the corner” — a statement that turns out to be literally true.
The produce section is to the immediate left of the entrance, while the member services desk is at left. “We wanted to really feature the department,” says Noah Langnas, store team leader (“store manager” in Fare & Square-speak) and self-described “old Acme guy.” Continues Langnas: “You can see when you look at it, it’s full, it’s fresh, it’s priced right, so I think the way this store is laid out is one of the reasons” produce has performed even better than expected.
In contrast to the idea many local residents have that produce is prohibitively expensive, Langnas draws attention to the department’s hot prices, at the core of one of the store’s main goals: making healthy food affordable.
Fare & Square’s full-throttle approach to produce is also apparent in the department’s focus on big, splashy displays, among them a waterfall of apples (at 69 cents a pound) to greet incoming customers.
Additionally, future store efforts will involve produce. Langnas describes a partnership with Hillside Farm, just a few miles away, which offers a “Seed to Snack” programme that gets elementary school children to try different fruits and vegetables. “What we’re going to offer them is a coupon to bring home to their parents for $2 off their next produce purchase,” he says.
Other big attractions at Fare & Square are a deli counter featuring low-sodium and gluten-free offerings, located at the far right of the store behind a small bakery section, and a back wall taken up with fresh juices and dairy products, fresh meats and frozen products. According to Langnas, fresh meat and deli are also trending higher than anticipated among customers. In fact, along with produce, they were key community requirements for any store opening in the area.
Rounding out the store’s selection is a well-edited six-aisle centre store section and a far-left wall of baby food and nonfoods, above which is one of the store’s signature design features: a vibrant mural encapsulating the spirit of Chester, the first city in Pennsylvania.
Despite the relative lack of space devoted to it, the center store section manages to provide shoppers with a range of products, including some new and unusual items, for less money.Also unique to Fare & Square is its free membership programme. Although membership isn’t mandatory to buy things at the store (that may change in the future as it attracts more customers), shoppers are encouraged to join the Carrot Club to be eligible to gain such rewards as store credit given through in-store promotions, programme incentives and special values. Additionally, members who earn 200 percent of the poverty line or less can receive Carrot Cash, a 7 percent credit toward future purchases.
In regard to Chester itself, though, as everyone at Fare & Square attests, the community is undoubtedly buoyed by the venture.
