All that is Missing is a Location…

The NOFC is looking for a home. Over the last few years the New Orleans Food Co-op has worked diligently to open a co-operative grocery store in New Orleans. With a strong membership base of 441 people, diverse local community investment, and support from co-operative enterprises across the nation, all that we are missing is a location. Now, we are searching for a space approximately 5,500 sq. ft., in which to settle down.

This year, with grants from Entergy and the Food Co-op 500, we have had the privilege of working with Cooperative Development Services (CDS). Our growing management team of members has been learning from their experience in planning, opening, and managing a co-operative grocery store.

We anticipate opening in early 2010. We are working on a business plan and organizing our initial member loan campaign. We hope to have as many active members as possible by opening day, so that we can continue to build this process with community input and investment. We are on track with our current plan to finance this cooperative endeavor through member equity, member loans, grants, bank loans, and other fundraising.

We are looking to our membership and our community to help us decide on a site for our first storefront. We have formed a site search committee, which is open to any NOFC member. This committee is already exploring several possible store locations and looking for other locations to consider.

Ideal sites for a new grocery store should consider adequate parking, a central location, and public transportation access. If you have any suggestions regarding a possible site, or if you are a member that would like to be on our site search committee, please send an e-mail to (sitesearch@nolafoodcoop.org) sitesearch (at) nolafoodcoop (dot) org.