Victoria Penate | Staff Writer
BriarPatch Food Co-op marketing manager Rebecca Torpie said that, for the co-op, the former Kmart site in Auburn is “a perfect opportunity.”
The co-op, which currently operates a storefront in Grass Valley, announced Thursday it had signed a lease to the space and would be opening a second location there.
In a release, BriarPatch board members described the decision as motivated by three main factors: desire to increase community impact, improvement of the local food system, and success as a business.
According to Torpie, although other locations were considered, Auburn had been identified as a front runner through several years of market research.
FROM A PRESS RELEASE:
“BriarPatch Food Co-op has signed a lease for its second store location at the former Kmart site at 2505 Bell Road in Auburn, California. The 44 year-old food cooperative has served as a community hub of Grass Valley and has moved locations five times, growing from a small storefront to its current 20,000 square foot lodestone for organic and local food. Its annual sales now top $35M and 10,000 people are member-owners, supporting the co-op by contributing a refundable lifetime $200 equity share and through their patronage of the store. The current location at Sierra College Drive in Grass Valley has reached its maximum level of sales capacity for its size, and with a large percentage of owners and sales coming from the Auburn trade area and even further south along the 49 corridor, the opportunity was prime.