The People’s Supermarket launches Hackney consultation
The People’s Supermarket has been commissioned by Hackney Council to find out if the local community in Homerton would support the opening of a store there. The supermarket has launched a seven-week consultation, asking local people what they think.
The member owned co-operative describes itself as a food store that is community-focused and says it is committed to offering lower prices by reinvesting the profits back into the store.
Since it opened last year, The People’s Supermarket’s first shop in Lamb’s Conduit Street has attracted over 1,200 members who volunteer in exchange for a share in the shop and enjoy discounts.
The People’s Supermarket says that setting up shop in Homerton is part of its vision to create commercially sustainable social enterprises that grow and turn a profit, but with community values at its heart.
If it gets the go-ahead, the supermarket would offer Homerton residents a food buying network connecting them to the local farming community.
Inside The People's Supermarket's store in Bloomsbury. Photograph: TPS
Kate Bull, co-founder and Chief Executive of The People’s Supermarket is heading up the study and will presenting the findings to Hackney Council, along with a business plan and environmental and social impact assessment.
Commenting on the initiative, she said: “This is a great opportunity for us further prove that our business model works. Social enterprises have been mistaken for operating only in the voluntary sector, but it is a way of doing business that goes much wider, across all industries and sectors. Social enterprise is a model of business that can deliver a multitude of things for our local communities including economic growth, jobs, while working towards solving social and environmental problems.”
Councillor Guy Nicholson, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, said: “People are becoming more concerned about the impact of mass food production, and many are making more conscious food purchases. The People’s Supermarket will provide responsibly sourced food, as well as giving people a greater connection to the production process of the food of they are eating — from farm to plate. It will also bring economic growth and an increased sense of community to the area as paid employees, local food providers and volunteers work together to run the operation. The model has worked very successfully elsewhere and we would certainly welcome it in Hackney.”
The Chatsworth Road Traders and Residents Association is hosting a pop-up People’s Supermarket at its Sunday Market on Chatsworth Road until Sunday 9 October. The market is open every Sunday from 11am until 4pm.
Update Friday 1 September: Meet The People’s Supermarket at Hackney City Farm on Thursday 8 Sept 6.30 – 7.30pm or at Homerton Library on Tuesday 13 Sept 10am – 8pm.
If you live in the area shaded below, or nearby, The People’s Supermarket would like to hear from you:
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Find out more about the People’s Supermarket’s Hackney consultation.
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