Corner stores are often at the centre of their communities, but they’re not often known as sources of healthy eating options.
The problem is simple enough, buying in fresh fruit and vegetables is expensive for shop owners – and if they don’t sell quickly, perishable. There’s also a problem of perception; shoppers keen on fresh produce are more likely to head to the supermarket to fill their baskets, using the corner store for midnight milk runs instead.
As part of a class on Social Practice, a group of students from the University of San Francisco wanted to see if local corner stores could be used more effectively to help encourage healthy eating.
Their idea was to pair the store with nearby organic farmers so it could act as a pick-up point for community supported agriculture boxes – i.e. pre-ordered boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables that come direct from farms.
Although the store doesn’t earn directly from the sale of the veggies, customers have to call into the store to pick-up their boxes, leading to knock on business.
In short, the farms get a new revenue stream, the shop owners get more traffic and a greener tinge to their image and the customers get fresh fruit and veg without having to travel to bigger, out of town supermarkets.
The trick, of course, was to get enough customers from the local area signed up to the service to make it worthwhile for everyone involved. Which they did. The next step would be for every corner store in the city to be partnered with a farm.
A possible business idea perhaps?
Get Inspired
- Who are the ‘corner stores’ in your marketplace – could you partner with them?
- Who are the ‘farmers’ in your marketplace – could you give them access to your market?
- Could you play facilitator (like the students) in this kind of project and use it as a foundation of a new business?
Check out the article in Good magazine
Read the student’s project blog
Learn more about CSA (community supported agriculture)
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