Contact: Leslie Sanborn, 509 981-6467. leslie.sanborn@comcast.net

May 8, 2008

For immediate release

A fresh approach to groceries opens in Spokane. 

Main Market to place an emphasis on local producers and education.

Main Market, Spokane’s only natural foods cooperative, plans to open at the end of October, 2008 at 17 West Main Avenue in downtown Spokane.

The Market was conceived to fulfill a number of needs, the core of which are:

— access to fresh, healthy food for the residents and visitors of downtown Spokane

— a retail partner, who will buy local in smaller quantities from area producers

— reliable and approachable information for consumers regarding the foods and goods

     they purchase

Fulfilling these needs in a manner similar to the progressive development of the Community and Saranac Buildings, Main Market cooperative grocery unveils as the next phase of work by Jim Sheehan’s Community Building LLC. Led by new team member and sustainable food expert, Jennifer M. Hall, Main Market has already begun to take shape.

Grocery shoppers looking for the freshest, locally grown food in the area now will have access to a store that prioritizes fresh, organic products from local farmers and producers. Main Market will offer a tempting selection of produce, meat and seafood, along with a healthy array of prepared foods in its deli case.  Look here for Green Bluff strawberries, Upper Columbia peaches and cheeses, grassfed meats from Eastern WA and Taylor Farms shellfish, to name just a few.

Working together.

Main Market’s cooperative structure was purposefully selected as yet another tool to build stronger community together.  Meeting the diverse needs of Spokane relies on diverse input.  The co-op model not only invites, but fundamentally operates through public direction and management, as entrusted to a Board of Directors. Local ownership through active members allows the store to respond to and invest in the needs of the immediate community. The Market thanks the initial steering committee members, passionate about helping transform the vision into reality:

Shelia Collins, Governor’s Office, Eastern Washington Representative

Mary Eberle, aNeMonE handmade paper flowers

Julie Goltz, Center for Justice

John Grollmus, The Moon Time, Elk, Porch and Two Seven Public Houses

Jim Haynes, Pacific Materials Exchange

Dorothy MacEachern, Regional Health District

Patricia Sampson, RenCorp Realty

Jim Sheehan, Community Building LLC

Michael Woods, SJ, Gonzaga University

The focus of The Steering Group’s first few meetings will be to finalize the overall mission and structure of the co-op, as well as define the member benefits.  “We feel there is a real opportunity to involve people in the process” said founder Jim Sheehan. “This isn’t our Market.  Ultimately, it will belong to the people of Spokane.”

Main Market will work together with our area producers as well. Shoppers may know some of the farmers already from visiting area farmers’ markets.  The Market will help these same producers and Spokane consumers connect by extending access past our traditional seasonal limitations. The Market will also reach out to new local producers who may not be able to sell at a farmers’ market.  As buyers, they will prioritize knowing where the food comes from and how it’s produced, and invite the public to do the same.

Main Market’s “Learn with Us” program offers chances for consumers to learn more about sustainable, local food and products.  As part of this process, people are invited to join our In the Field visits.  These on-site tours of area farms and ranches allow consumers to interact with the people who make our food and see first-hand what it takes to bring food to the table.  The Market begins these open to the public outings on Saturday, May 31st with a visit to Lazy R Ranch in Cheney, WA.  Sign up at the www.mainmarket.coop web site.

Changing perceptions. 

With rooftop greenhouses and rentable freezer lockers for downtowners to store berries picked in season or the success of a good hunting season, Main Market will reshape the common perception of a co-op grocery.  “Rather than people thinking of it as a ‘traditional health food store’, we are designing a reliable, approachable destination for Spokane to locate and learn about healthy foods,” says team lead Jennifer M.  Hall.  “Food that’s healthy for you, healthy for the producer, healthy for the environment,—healthy for Spokane."