Wedge Community Co-op
Encyclopedia
The Wedge Community Co-op or The Wedge is a food cooperative located in Minneapolis
, Minnesota
. Located at 2105 Lyndale Ave South, the Wedge derives its name from the popular nickname for the Lowry Hill East neighborhood, called "The Wedge" due to its shape. The Wedge is a member of the NCBA
and the NCGA
.
on Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis. It was formed after a group of neighbors met that summer to organize a cooperative store to provide themselves with whole and natural foods, preferably in bulk quantities to save money. In 1979, the Wedge moved to Lyndale Avenue. Wedge had a member labor program in place until 1992, when it built a new store in the lot adjacent to its store. An addition which doubled the retail space was built in 1997.
The Wedge was the first certified organic grocery store in Minnesota.
s.
, a Point of Sale
(PoS) system for cooperatives. The program was developed by Tak Tang, an employee of The Wedge.
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. Located at 2105 Lyndale Ave South, the Wedge derives its name from the popular nickname for the Lowry Hill East neighborhood, called "The Wedge" due to its shape. The Wedge is a member of the NCBA
National Cooperative Business Association
Founded in 1916 as the Cooperative League of America, the National Cooperative Business Association is a United States membership organization for cooperatives, businesses that are jointly-owned and democratically-controlled....
and the NCGA
National Cooperative Grocers Association
The National Cooperative Grocers Association is a marketing service cooperative of cooperative grocery stores founded in 1999 in the United States. NCGA's membership includes 114 independent food cooperatives operating more than 145 stores in 32 states with combined annual sales of nearly $1.2...
.
History
Wedge was formed in 1974 in a basement apartmentBasement apartment
A basement apartment is an apartment located below street level, underneath another structure—usually an apartment building, but possibly a house or a business. Rent in basement apartments is usually much lower than it is in above-ground units, due to a number of deficiencies common to basement...
on Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis. It was formed after a group of neighbors met that summer to organize a cooperative store to provide themselves with whole and natural foods, preferably in bulk quantities to save money. In 1979, the Wedge moved to Lyndale Avenue. Wedge had a member labor program in place until 1992, when it built a new store in the lot adjacent to its store. An addition which doubled the retail space was built in 1997.
The Wedge was the first certified organic grocery store in Minnesota.
Warehouse
The Wedge Co-op has a wholesale distributor, the Co-op Partners Warehouse, which services retail co-ops, natural food stores and restaurants in the Upper Midwest. Co-op Partners Warehouse began as a produce wholesaler and has since expanded into organic milk, cheese and yogurt; soy products, fresh juices and smoothies; and a selection of dry grocery items.Gardens of Eagan
In January, 2008, the co-op leased Gardens of Eagan, one of the oldest local certified organic produce farms in the Twin Cities area. The co-op has the option to purchase the land after five years, and has been running the operation since summer 2008.Organic Field School
In 2008, the Wedge Co-op formed the Organic Field School (OFS) at Gardens of Eagan. OFS is an on-farm facility with a focus on education and research for farmers, educators, policy makers and the public.WedgeShare
Since 1997, The Wedge has administered a charitable giving program based on the 7th cooperative principle. The donations are given to community groups chosen by the Wedge membership by vote. In its history, WedgeShare has given nearly $240,000 to non-profit organizationNon-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
s.
IS4C
The Wedge uses IS4CIS4C
IS4C or Integrated Systems for Co-ops is a free web-based point of sale software for retail stores initially developed by Tak Tang for the Wedge Community Co-op in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The software utilizes an SQL database and enables tracking of customer purchase totals that cooperatives use in...
, a Point of Sale
Point of sale
Point of sale or checkout is the location where a transaction occurs...
(PoS) system for cooperatives. The program was developed by Tak Tang, an employee of The Wedge.