Non-Profit Store to Open in Pa. Food Desert

PHILADELPHIA — Hunger relief organization Philabundance here has retained retail design consultancy CBX to design a prototype for Fare & Square, a not-for-profit grocery store slated to open this summer in Chester, Pa.

Fare & Square, a 13,000-square-foot store, will sell nutritious food staples with a focus on fresh produce, meats, dairy, seafood and frozen foods at everyday low prices. It will give residents of Chester — one of the 35 food deserts in the Delaware Valley according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture — easy access to fresh foods for the first time since the town’s last full-scale grocer closed in 2001. Philabundance recently purchased the town’s former grocery building.

Under its not-for-profit grocery store model, Fare & Square will offer a customer-focused shopping experience and will partner with local organizations and businesses to provide a range of services to the community.

One aspect of the overall design “is that it will reflect the hopeful and respectful nature of Philabundance’s goal to serve Chester residents through a store that could look at home in any community,” said Joseph Bona, president of CBX branded environments, in a statement. “Ultimately, we’re designing a neighborhood store that will have the look and feel of a traditional supermarket in that it's clean, well lit, convenient and friendly, but also a place that the community can call their own, instilling a sense of optimism, pride and connection.”


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