The Co-Op's Vision

What will the Co-op look and feel like after it’s open?

A more formal description will be coming soon, but in the meantime, we’ve got some basic information and a few visuals to help get a sense of the future Co-op.

The First Step

Community members from across the Cedar Valley are working diligently to open a full-service cooperative grocery store in or near downtown Cedar Falls, IA. The store will be about 8,000 sq ft (which is about twice the size of the old Roots Market or four times the size of Flowerama on 1st Street). There will be a minimum of 32 parking spaces to accommodate all shoppers. The store will have all the basics today’s consumers need in a grocery store:

  • produce
  • frozen goods
  • bulk items
  • canned and dried goods
  • beer and wine
  • health and beauty products
  • cleaning supplies
  • prepared foods to go.

To get a glimpse of the store, we can look to the numerous other food co-ops across the country to help get a sense. Take a tour with our Co-op Visual Guide.

Or, take a virtual tour of the Oneota Food Co-op (located in Decorah, IA) to get another look:

The Future

After opening the first store, the board is already thinking about next steps. As the board looks into the future for the Co-op, it’s a pretty exciting vision. In the first few years after opening the doors, we fully intend to add a delivery service. Then, after getting settled into our Cedar Falls site, we’ll then start to look at expansions, which could take many forms – satellite locations, pop-up stores, a food truck, and even multiple locations.

Questions or ideas? Drop us a line, and let us know what’s on your mind.