Could Dayton’s community grocery be a model for Akron? Get to know Gem City Market

Whether speaking to residents, groups trying to help or grocery industry experts, everyone agrees the way to combat food deserts is as steadfast as it is simple — open a grocery store.

The solution to bringing healthy, affordable food to Akron neighborhoods might be found a few hours away.

Gem City Market is a community-owned, full-service grocery store — and so much more — in northwest Dayton.

Since opening in 2021, the cooperative has brought fresh produce, as well as community amenities, to one of Dayton’s food deserts.

Creating Gem City Market

The idea for a grocery store came from neighbors within the community. Over the next six years, they mobilized more community members, elected officials, foundations and hospitals to make their dream come to life.

Gem City Market’s founders garnered community support by organizing open meetings, knocking on doors, hosting potlucks and house parties, participating in neighborhood cleanups and even creating a cornhole team.

The project cost $7 million, with $5.5 million used to build the 8,000-square-foot store and the remaining $1.5 million allocated to initial operational costs, such as inventory and startup labor.

Gem City is majority-owned and operated by its workers (70%) and community members (30%). Each member-owner share costs $100 or $10 for anyone who self identifies as limited, low or fixed income.

The co-op holds fast to its community-made mission statement: “To serve, engage, and empower our neighborhoods by providing affordable, high-quality food in a clean and welcoming environment that is worker and community owned.”

Some board members questioned whether to put “clean” in the mission statement, said Lela Klein, one of Gem City Market’s board members.

“But we had like 200 people in this church basement, and everybody was like, ‘Clean!’ because so many of the grocery stores in this community are really dirty because they have really low staffing models, so it’s really challenging for them to keep up with maintenance, or they don’t have money to reinvest in equipment,” said Klein.

Consistent cleanliness and customer service are bonuses for Coco Cochran, a street maintenance employee with the city of Dayton. But it’s the fresh produce that keeps her walking through the market’s aisles.

Cochran, who assembles her lunch from Gem City Market’s salad bar daily, has Stage 4 breast cancer. Health is one of her priorities.

“I like it,” said Cochran. “It’s convenient. It’s good for me. I can eat more and healthy.”

Before discovering Gem City Market, Cochran and her work partner were eating lunch at one of Brown Street’s many fast-food restaurants. One day about six months ago, the two were thirsty after cutting grass and decided to stop in Gem City — and the rest is history.

“It’s just a healthy store — period,” said Cochran. “It’s clean. The people are nice.”

Is Gem City Market affordable?

Keeping prices affordable amid post-pandemic inflation continues to be a balancing act, but the co-op has taken steps to lessen the blow to customers, especially when it comes to fresh produce.

Gem City Market employs a hybrid pricing strategy, pricing pantry essentials, produce and fresh meat for those with a limited food budget. Familiar brands and specialty goods are in stock to draw in customers with more disposable income.

Two-thirds of their customers live in households at or below the area’s median income, according to the market’s most recent customer survey. In addition, 25% of the market’s 2,900 weekly transactions use SNAP/EBT. 

Gem City accepts Produce Perks, which provide SNAP/EBT cards (formerly known as food stamps) with a dollar-for-dollar match up to $15. The store also participates in Produce Prescription, a program where health care providers can write prescriptions for free fruits and vegetables.

Klein said the store fills a need “for appropriate, accessible, affordable groceries in our neighborhood.”

Empowering Dayton’s communities

The vast majority of the market’s employees, also known as employee-owners, live within walking distance of Gem City Market. The same goes for customers, some of whom are member-owners who purchase a community-owner membership share of the store.

If the store becomes profitable as predicted in 2026, profits will be split among community-owners, who will receive 30%, and employee-owners, who will get 70%. All owners also get to attend an annual member meeting, featuring a “State of the Co-op” presentation followed by food tastings, vendors market and special sales throughout the store.

Gem City Market has a community room, used for yoga classes, neighborhood meetings, community baby showers and more. There’s also a community teaching kitchen for organizations to hold classes and programs on nutrition.

Having the space has allowed the store to host initiatives by health professionals like Dr. Rachelle Dulan Hood, who developed a video-based program called Food Is My Medicine.

Each video included a presentation by a resident physician or dietitian on various topics, including shopping on a budget, healthy versions of traditional recipes and how to read nutrition labels; a cooking demonstration from a local chef; and a segment featuring a local artist’s work.

Participants received a pot, pan, baking sheet and cookbook, along with free groceries from Gem City Market to make each video’s featured recipe.

“It’s not enough to build a grocery store,” said Klein. “You also need to kind of build a culture around, ‘How do we share our skills? How do we highlight the assets in the community around food and cooking?’”

Could a Rubber City Market happen?

To truly get an idea of whether a co-op grocery store could work in Akron, Klein suggests overlaying a map of the city’s food deserts with a wholesaler’s “gravity model,” which predicts where people are willing to drive. The gravity map would then be overlaid with the target area’s population and income, among other factors.

After that assessment, three big questions about opening a store need to be answered: Would the store be easy for people to get to? Does the impacted area meet the definition of a food desert? And is there enough population density to support a grocery store?

Making a Rubber City market would take a community movement, something that can seem daunting and impossible when starting out. Klein encourages inquiring minds to connect with other co-ops nationwide trying to achieve the same goal.

Klein said it’s important to balance grocery industry standards with the community’s needs and desires.

 At first, Gem City’s organizers were told by their wholesaler that they wouldn’t have the sales to sustain a full-service meat department and 18-foot produce section.

They pushed on, listening to their community, and today both sections are thriving.

“The traditional grocery industry does not actually have a lot of answers for communities like ours,” said Klein.

Got a story recommendation? Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at [email protected] and on Twitter @TawneyBeans. And follow her adventures on TikTok @akronbeaconjournal.