West Chester's community-owned grocery store has grown to 845 member-owners as the cooperative settles into daily operations at 204 W. Market St.

The West Chester Food Cooperative opened Aug. 21 and reported 833 members a week later. By Sept. 1, that number had climbed to 845, MyChesCo reported.

The store occupies 2,800 square feet of retail space across from the Chester County Justice Center. It is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week, and anyone can shop there. Membership is not required.

It is the borough's first walkable grocery option since the IGA closed decades ago.

"West Chester came and they were hungry. They came to shop," Board President Judy Carrino told the Daily Local News on Aug. 28, describing the store's opening days.

The co-op stocks products from a deep bench of local vendors. West Chester businesses supplying the store include Unruly Nature, Sneaky Brew, Poppy Ski's Pierogi, Mindfully Mina's, Golden Valley Roasters and The Jawnery Bakery. Other Chester County vendors include Vera Pasta, Bailys Dairy, Chaikhana Chai, Good Girls Bakery, Baba's Brew and Swarmbustin' Honey.

Produce comes from Bryn Clovis Farm in Malvern, about nine miles away, along with Lancaster County-based Paradise Organics, Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative and Four Seasons Produce in Ephrata. The co-op says its local sourcing generally covers producers within about 100 miles.

The store employs one full-time and 11 part-time workers. Store Team Leader Issa Ostrander, a 25-year food-marketing veteran, previously ran a popsicle business in Kennett Square and sold popsicles at the co-op's pop-up market. That pop-up operated from October 2020 to October 2022 at 142 E. Market St.

Ostrander told the Daily Local that customers were surprised by how close the store is to their homes. Assistant Store Team Leader Ralph Young, who previously worked at Creekside Co-op in Elkins Park, said in the same interview that the cooperative model takes years to mature, expressing confidence in the store's long-term future.

Carrino told the Daily Local the store follows a "good, better, best" pricing model with everyday low prices. Planning for the co-op began in March 2015. More than 11 years later, the challenge has shifted from fundraising to sustaining sales and attracting both members and nonmembers, according to MyChesCo.

The store sits next to a parking garage and bus terminal, giving access to pedestrians, drivers and transit riders. The co-op also plans to offer curbside pickup.

Membership costs $400 and gives buyers a share of the organization. Details on membership and vendors are available at westchester.coop/the-store.