Creative Distribution Networks = Affordable Fresh Food

I recently listened to a presentation by Mike Curtin, Executive Director of DC Central Kitchen (DCCK), as part of a webinar on the Wallace HUFED Center. Mike talked about how, because DCCK’s supply of donated food was decreasing as food companies tightened their inventory controls, the organization had to shift from seeking food donations to finding a more reliable supply of fresh food for their clients.

DCCK started reaching out to local and regional growers and buying surplus produce directly from those growers. In many cases these growers weren’t able to sell all of their products to large food companies, often because the product didn’t fit the uniformity and aesthetic requirements of those companies. Being a creative organization, DCCK was able to take advantage of the surplus food that was unwanted by the industry and began replacing the food products it was buying from wholesale distributors with food products bought directly from the growers.

One outstanding result of this shift is that clients of DC shelters are now eating up to 70% local product in their meals. This beats out even the most local-food-focused retail stores, restaurants and school cafeterias.

Another important result is that DCCK has been able to cut its own food costs dramatically, even as it has increased the quantity of food it’s purchasing each year. Mike showed a chart comparing the cost of purchasing food from a local farmer coop to the cost of purchasing food from Sysco, one of the largest food distributors in the nation. There was a marked difference in the cost of the products between the coop farmer and Sysco, which is ironic since Sysco has built its brand on being the cheapest food service distributor in the industry.

To explain how DCCK was able to reduce its food costs so much Mike simply said this: “If you’re creative in creating distribution networks this local food can actually be sourced at a significantly discounted cost from what it would cost to buy it…. from the national wholesalers.” I highlight Mike’s point and the experience of DCCK because it counters the common argument that the cost of food is often a prohibitive factor to making healthy food available in low-income urban communities. What DCCK has shown is that, with the real and direct relationships, creativity and genuine effort, it is entirely possible to provide large volumes of quality food at a very reasonable cost.

The key difference between DCCK and those who make the argument that healthy food can’t be made available affordably is that DCCK thinks outside of the box of the mainstream food distribution system, while the critics are often embedded within that mainstream food distribution system and are tied to its conventionalities. Thankfully, the approach of People’s Community Market will be much more aligned with DCCK than the mainstream players. And this approach – rooted in real and direct relationships, creativity and genuine effort - will be a key way that PCM will also ensure that West Oakland residents can always find affordable fresh food on the store’s shelves. DCCK has proven that when you get creative and think with a fresh perspective, fresh food becomes easy.

A food culture revolution in the grocery store

A key idea for People's Community Market is that it will be much more than just a grocery store and retailer of food products. While PCM will be a reliable and trusted fresh food retailer that does an outstanding job at offering great products that the community truly desires, selling food will not be all that PCM will do and be about. There is much more potential for grocery stores to play a meaningful role in communities, including helping to preserve and reactivate cultural traditions and relationships to food. One way that PCM intends to demonstrate that potential is by helping to ignite a dynamic cultural food renaissance in West Oakland. 

West Oakland has a rich and vast array of cultures, social networks and food traditions that reach back at least several generations. Many of those cultures and traditions were brought to West Oakland by people who relocated from places such as the Southern States, Latin America and Asia. But over the last couple of generations many of the food traditions have begun to slip away as residents depend on an industrial food system and corporate supermarket industry that are largely void of these traditional cultures. Yet, as we interact with and hear from the community, it's clear that there is a strong desire among many residents to be more connected with their food cultures and traditions.

This desire presents an opportunity for a grocery store to play a role in rebuilding the community's cultural fabric and relationship to food. PCM is planning all kinds of creative and unconventional ways to stimulate and provoke conversation and awareness about West Oakland's food cultures. From offering culturally-oriented food products to hosting workshops/classes/speakers about food cultures to using performance art and other forms of creative expression to explore the rich landscape of ideas and issues pertaining to food in the community, PCM will respond to and support the community's desires for a meaningful and interesting relationship to food that connects to cultural traditions, histories and values. And all of this will be done right in the grocery store itself so that customers can, if desired, conveniently attend a class or performance or other activity while on their shopping trip.

One of our criticisms of many supermarkets is that they often feel like giant, sterile warehouses void of any real culture, creativity or heart. But it doesn't have to be this way. If the people managing and running a store allow themselves to be more creative and to think outside of the box, the possibilities are endless. Stores can become community and cultural centers. They can become hubs of community activity and interaction. They can help invigorate excitement about the role of food in people's lives. Stores can help facilitate more meaningful interactions between eaters, their food and the people who helped to grow and provide that food. And they can become centers of inspiration for re-imagining the way our communities are developed, feed themselves and co-exist with the world around them.

A food culture revolution is happening in this country. Even in food desert communities many residents want more than just access to good food. PCM is planning to become a model for how that food revolution can be given life inside of a grocery store by providing as much space for and attention to culture, tradition, history and relationships as to the food products that are on the store's shelves.

Huffington Post Article Features PCM

July 28, 2010 - Eric Holt Gimenez, the Executive Director of Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy, wrote a piece for the Huffington Post that raises concerns over the move of Walmart and other big box retailers into urban food deserts communities. While bringing retail and good food into these communities is very much needed, Eric breaks down the potential damage that big box retailers can cause to communities that are already vulnerable. PCM's CEO, Brahm Ahmadi, is quoted in the post.

Here's the link to the story: The Fight Over Food Deserts -- Corporate America Smacks Its Way Down

PCM Presents at Slow Money Alliance National Gathering

In early June 2010 PCM's CEO Brahm Ahmadi attended the annual National Gathering of the Slow Money Alliance. An Entrepreneur Showcase was help on June 10 in which 25 food entrepreneurs each gave a 3 minute presentation on their venture and funding needs. Brahm participated in the showcase and presented on PCM. Click here to view a video of Brahm's presentation at the Slow Money Alliance's 2010 National Gathering.

Another important development that took place at the National Gathering was the announcement of Ari Derfel as the new Executive Director of Slow Money Alliance. This is very relevant to PCM as Ari is a member of PCM's Board of Director's and is the Board Treasurer. So Ari's direct involvement and leadership is building a movement for slow money that supports mission-driven and socially responsible companies is a significant opportunity for PCM to gain greater traction and support. You can learn more about Ari on his Facebook page by clicking here.

Brahm and PCM featured in Earth Island Journal

Earth Island Journal's Summer 2010 issue features a story on the efforts and challenges of developing urban agriculture in low-income neighborhoods. Brahm Ahmadi is quoted numerous times in the article. He discusses the need for scaling up in local food efforts and, especially, developing food retail stores in inner city markets that can sufficiently address the needs and desires of residents.

Here is the link to the article:
http://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/eij/article/a_growing_concern/

Video Interview with Delicious Living Magazine

June 23, 2010 - Brahm attended the Natural Products Expo in Anaheim, CA in March 2010, where he participated in several panel discussions. Brahm was also interviewed by Susan Esrey of Delicious Living Magazine about People's Community Market. Here is the video of the interview.



 

PCM in East Bay Express

June 21, 2010 - The current issue of the East Bay Express features a story entitled "Gardening Eden" about urban agriculture and food access. The feature article includes some mention of People's Community Market and statements from CEO Brahm Ahmadi. Click here to read the article.

While the article does a pretty good job in its explanation of PCM, there are a few points to clarify:

1. The article states that, after coming to understand the grocery business, Brahm was forced to rethink his approach. What really happened was that Brahm and his colleagues decided to employ a strategy in which they developed a mix of projects and small-scale food enterprises through a nonprofit which could create the foundation, capacity and social relations needed to position for the successful launch of a grocery store. The approach of creating a grocery store was never abandoned but simply placed within a broader strategy. PCM is the grocery store that Brahm and his colleagues began envisioning in 2003 and People's Grocery is the nonprofit that was created to act as a partner and in that effort.

2. The article states the People's Community Market is scheduled for launch in the spring/summer of 2011. While that time frame is our desired target date, nothing has been formally scheduled.  The timeline will be determined by how when PCM is able to secure the startup capital it requires.


3. The article states that Brahm Ahmadi left People's Grocery as its Executive Director in 2006 to work full-time on developing People's Community Market. This is not correct. Brahm departed from People's Grocery in January of 2010. 

4. The articles states that PCM expects that less than 25% of its product stock will be from local urban farms. While this is true for URBAN farms, it is not the case for sustainable family farm operations in the local region. PCM expects a much higher percentage of its produce to be sourced from local farms in the region. It is simply unclear as to whether smaller urban farms can be reliable suppliers to PCM.

First Loan Secured

May 21, 2010 - I have secured PCM's first small loan from a gentleman who has been a strong supporter of People's Grocery for years and is now an enthusiastic support of PCM. This loan is what I call "pre-money money". It's intended as a stop gap between having no money at all and raising capital for the real launch of the company. In order to raise that capital a lot of things have to be in place already, like a solid business plan, financial model, presentation, office space, etc. But these things all take money, especially if you want to do them right. So in order to prepare to go raise some money, I actually needed to have some money in the first place.

Most entrepreneurs end up funding their "pre-money money" needs out of their own pocket. I'm fortunate to have the support of a gentleman who believes in PCM and in myself who agreed to provide that first bit of funding himself. I'm very grateful to him.

Now things can really get cooking as I hire three key consutlants to help me finish up the planning:

• Retail Planning Specialist (helps with the floor plan, equipment plan and inventory plan)
• Deli and Prepared Foods Consultant (to help develop a unique menu and signature deli experience)
• Brand Development Consultant (to help further develop PCM's brand identity and strategy)

First Public Debut

May 20, 2010 -- My name is Brahm Ahmadi. I am co-founder of People's Grocery that I directed for eight years. In January 2010 I hired a new  Executive Director to take my place at People's Grocery. My planned departure from the organization was based on one goal that is shared with the Board and staff: to create a sister company, called People's Community Market (PCM) that could open and operate a food retail store in West Oakland (the same community served by People's Grocery).

Since that time I have been taking many initial steps toward making PCM a reality. I've made lot of progress in the last couple of months. Up to this point I've been staying pretty much out of the public's eye as I complete the formation and planning process. Of course, the planning and design process is still underway and will be for some time. But it's safe to say that I'm reaching the tail end of a phase where I hadn't wanted to share too much about what I've been up to so as to avoid promoting prematurely.

But now it's time to to start sharing a bit with the public about my progress in this exciting new venture. I'll be sharing much of what I'm up to and the basic concepts behind PCM  through this blog and through PCM's website. The time to start seeking capital to this venture is fast approaching. Which means that things are going to getting pretty exciting as I enter the next critical stage of the start up. And this next stage  is as much about telling the story of PCM and sharing the passion of it, as it is about making a solid business proposition and reporting on accomplishments. So stay tuned as this story begins to unfold.