Ashdown Market inks contract with Federated Co-operatives Ltd.

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This article was published 08/11/2023 (717 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Toiletries, flour, AA batteries — all are on the list for an Exchange District grocery store’s expansion.

Ashdown Market has inked a contract with Federated Co-operatives Ltd. to purchase goods for its downtown shop.

“We want to be that community centre,” said Josh Giesbrecht, a managing partner at Ashdown Market.

The small grocery opened last May at 171 Bannatyne Ave. The east Exchange has a growing residential population and, until Ashdown Market, had no grocery option for several blocks.

“It became pretty clear that if we wanted to become a real grocery store, wanted to actually have a whole toiletry line… we would have to find a grocery supplier,” Giesbrecht said.

The shop has stocked fresh produce and meats, like steaks and burgers, since its inception. One of its founders, Noel Bernier, owns neighbour restaurant Hermanos; the team used its connections at Sysco, Hermanos’ food supplier, to fill store shelves.

But there are gaps, Giesbrecht noted. He’d like to add more dry goods and miscellaneous items, like cereal and garbage bags, to the shop.

That’s where Federated Cooperatives Ltd. comes in. Ashdown Market will begin sourcing from the western Canadian company this week, according to Giesbrecht.

“They have a very good track record… of being a dependable grocer and being a good price,” he said.

He’s used to scouring and comparing prices when buying items for the shop not sold by Sysco. The new partnership will take away the stress and free up time, Giesbrecht stated.

An average of 110 people shop at the store daily, he said. His co-worker Marleen Mecas, who oversaw the shop Tuesday, said upwards of 80 people buy at Ashdown Market daily.

“We want to keep developing the space we’re in and keep building with the community,” Giesbrecht said. “We absolutely love this community.”

Mecas lives in the area.

“Just things like tampons and shampoo and conditioner will be nice to have, so you don’t have to leave the area to get them,” she said.

Giesbrecht envisions expanding the roughly 1,700-sq.-ft. storefront early next year. He hopes to open up 1,500 sq. ft. of space in the back.

“This is a real Exchange District-type solution to a grocery store,” said David Pensato, executive director of the Exchange District BIZ.

It “fits in the neighbourhood” and is unlike the typical grocery found in Winnipeg, he noted.

Its plans of expansion also are a tangible sign of the area’s residential growth, Pensato continued. The Exchange has more than doubled its residents over the past seven years.

More apartment space has been built on Waterfront Drive, including The Bend and the second phase of The Pumphouse.

“It absolutely fills a need,” Pensato said of Ashdown Market.

Even so, residents often drive to grocery stores, just as they do elsewhere in the city, he noted. The local grocer is “an added convenience.”

“We’re not in an area that needs to do the large box store shopping,” he said. “You go in and (get the) stuff that you need today.”

Alison Greenslade picked up milk at Ashdown Market Tuesday — the coffee shop she manages nearby was getting low, and their usual supply hadn’t arrived.

“It is convenient,” she said, referencing Ashdown Market. “I honestly can’t think of where the next place would be.”

There are barriers to entry, she noted — it’s easy to miss, and because of its cannabis shop status, customers must be at least 19 years old to enter.

Ashdown Market was previously Ashdown Cannabis, and before that, Uncle Sam’s Cannabis. It changed to grocery retail, in part, because of poor sales.

The grocery continues to sell cannabis, though the products are out of sight.

“(Ashdown Market) is definitely a start in this neighbourhood,” Greenslade said. “I think having a grocery store in a food desert, especially one that works with a local restaurant, is always a good thing.”

Ashdown Market is working on getting its licence changed to allow minors inside, Giesbrecht said.

The company will have access to the same goods as Red River Co-op, noted Timothy James, a senior retail operations advisor with Federated Co-operatives.

“They could bring in lumber products, if they wanted to,” James laughed, adding the Exchange District shop likely won’t.

Federated Co-operatives Ltd. supplies around 70 to 80 independent grocers with products across Western Canada.

Ashdown Market is their first partner in Winnipeg.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com