In Alaska, grocery shopping is often expensive and products can be scarce since most of the products must be shipped in the state. It is not uncommon to see empty shelves and produce and staples double the price of what is offered in continental US.
It is even more difficult to find specialty food stores, and the City of Fairbanks was no exception. The lack of healthy options for purchase is the reason why in 2009, community members came together to launch Co-op Market Grocery & Deli, the city’s only natural food’s store. By February 2013, the co-op had raised over $1,044,000 in funds and had 1,500 members, but needed an additional $674,000 to open its doors.
When Co-op Market approached us, they shared how they needed financing to cover their operations. Our Executive Director, Gerardo Espinoza, was in touch with the consultants that worked with them to analyze the feasibility of the project. He visited the site to survey the area and the project, before sharing about it with our loan committee. They then approved a $100,000 loan which allowed the co-op to open its doors in March 2013 as the first food cooperative in Alaska.
In 2019, we provided another loan of $200,000 to refinance existing debt with near-term maturities, including in individual member loans to help the co-op manage its cash liquidity, and reduce administrative burden.
Today Co-op Market is located in the downtown area specializing in local, organic, and fair-trade foods at competitive prices and offers customers personal service. The store’s mission is to “work for health and sustainability by providing natural foods and products, promoting local suppliers, and offering consumer education in an open community center environment.”. It has over 4600 members, and continues to serve Fairbanks with fresh and healthy food.
Co-op Market is just one of the many coops that we fund co-ops in the US, from Alaska to Florida. If you are interested in supporting our work, please consider checking out the Investors tab. If you are a member of a cooperative and are interested in financing your project, please see the Lending tab.