A Quick History
In the spring of 1973, the Fredericton Direct Charge Co-op was organized by a small group of community members, inspired by the Co-operative movement to become the autonomous, collective owners of their own store. The store officially opened in 1974, serving a membership of about 500 families with groceries, meat, produce and a gas bar.
Through the years, Fredericton Co-op has expanded numerous times to accommodate an expanding membership, with the latest major expansion completed in October of 2002. We have members who live as far away as Chipman and Nackawic and travel to shop at our store on a regular basis! We have also undertaken a number of renovations and upgrades to keep our building up to date and to ensure we are able to serve our members better.
Fredericton Co-op is now the only Independently Owned Grocer/One Stop Shopping Retailer in the city of Fredericton. That means that money doesn’t leave our community but stays here because the people who own the store LIVE HERE TOO! We support our community by raising funds for local charities, donating to various youth groups, supporting other local businesses through our “Capital Area Buyers Club”, awarding scholarships each year to members and their families, and by buying as much product as we can locally (especially from our farming friends!).
Today, Fredericton Co-op and our 9,500 member/owners are proud to celebrate over 45 years in business! We are very proud of our successes over the past 45 years, and we continue to grow because our owner/members are such strong supporters!