AUBURN, CA – BriarPatch Food Co-op will celebrate the Auburn store’s 1st birthday on Saturday, August 10th with a week of food and fun, August 5th – 11th.
Highlights from the Auburn store’s upcoming schedule:
- Monday, August 5th: The first 200 shoppers through the checkout line will receive UNFI Product Giveaway bags as they complete their purchases.
- Monday, August 5th – Sunday, August 11th: New Member Owner Drive with goodie-filled tote bags available when people stop by either store to join.
- Wednesday, August 7th, 4-6pm: Community Dinner offering a selection of boxed combo meals at $8.10 each, through the Deli service line.
- Friday, August 9th, 4-6pm: The second of five BriarPatch “Grillin’ ‘n Chillin’” events, on the patio. Convivial atmosphere and grilled meals available for purchase ($9.99). The Grass Valley store also hosts a similar event.
- Saturday, August 10th, 2-4pm: Birthday Cake Taste Test. Tasting stations throughout the store will feature four different cake combinations from our Bakery. Shoppers can vote for their favorite and enter to win a Weber Q1200 grill (1st prize) or a $200 “We Love You Auburn” selection of gift cards from local businesses (2nd prize).
Milestones realized during the Auburn store’s first year:
- The store received the EPA’s GreenChill Platinum Certification. As part of the transformation of the space into a grocery store, a CO2 natural refrigeration system was installed – only 2% of U.S. grocery stores currently use this technology, and by our count two other U.S. food co-ops.
- Both stores began reusable utensil programs this past April. Shoppers receive stainless steel forks, knives, and spoons for both dining in and take-out options. They’re welcome to take the metal utensils to-go and return them on their next visit to BriarPatch to be washed and made ready for the next use.
- General Manager Chris Maher won the 2024 CCMA Cooperative Service Award.
- Various successful events hosted at the store: “Breaking the Mold” Cheese and Wine Pairing (May); Wheelie Good Women’s Bike Clinic (May – hosted in partnership with the Auburn Trails Alliance); Eating for Health nutrition series (June).
- Both locations are on track for a combined $50 million in sales this year.
- New owners in the past year: Over 1,400.
Says Chris Maher, BriarPatch Food Co-op General Manager: “This has been a transformational time for our co-op. We are excited about the great reception our new store has received and enthusiastic about a bright cooperative future. Shoppers are excited to embrace what BriarPatch offers –-that unique blend of friendliness, warmth and slightly quirky, approachable personality that sets us apart. Everyone truly is welcome, and you can feel it.”
BriarPatch Food Co-op is a neighborly grocery store serving up local, high quality, healthy food and supporting our Sierra Foothills community since 1976. Learn more at briarpatch.coop