Photo by Jim Muchlinski Ivanhoe Foods store manager Faith Olsen checks out groceries for customer Randy Wersal. The store is owned by 81 shareholders who first purchased shares in 2015. Board members have a goal of acquiring additional customers and more sales.

IVANHOE — The Ivanhoe Foods grocery store faced a likely shutdown in 2014, so local residents stepped up to the plate.

They formed Ivanhoe Community Foods, a cooperative with 81 shareholders and 132 shares. They provided the store with much needed capital to sustain its operations.

“It exists because the community wants it,” said Ivanhoe Community Foods board chairman Kyle Krier. “It goes beyond just being willing to shop here. We have a large group of people who invested money in it.”

He said the store was previously owned by a group. Its members played a role in promoting the store to friends and neighbors, encouraging investment from a broader base of the community.

The members of Ivanhoe Community Foods are served by a seven-member board of directors. The board meets monthly and presides over an annual meeting.

The store is staffed by two full-time and four part-time employees. Day to day management decisions are handled by store manager Faith Olsen.

The first community meeting to establish a food cooperative was held in 2014. Shares were first sold in 2015, Krier said by laws limit the venture to a total of 100 shareholders.

In its first seven years, the business has operated with loaned capital provided by shareholders. The same challenges that confronted previous owners have affected the profit margin.

“It’s been a challenge,” Krier said. “Many of our younger residents work out of town during the day, and sometimes it’s convenient to shop where they work. We encourage everyone to shop here at least occasionally. Everything they buy is helpful.”

He said an ideal situation for the store would be gross sales of about $800,000 a year, or more than $2,000 a day. At that level, it would be possible to have a profit that could be paid out to shareholders as repayment of the capital they’ve invested.

“We don’t have a magic number that has to be reached,” he said. “Operating costs will go up, so our income will have to steadily increase to keep pace. At $800,000 a year, it would definitely be able to sustain itself.”

Olsen said the store benefits from good communication between employees and board members, as well as a loyal customer base. Ivanhoe has a population of 579, along with a sizable rural trade area.

“It has very strong support within the community and in the surrounding rural townships,” she said. “People want a grocery store. Our main goal is to have really good quality, with fresh cut meat and a bakery. We also work hard to promote the store to potential new customers.”

Customers who stopped at Ivanhoe Foods this week expressed satisfaction with the store, along with a desire to buy groceries locally.

Rita Mack said she comes to the store for almost all of her grocery shopping. She’s been a customer for more than 50 years, and often stops in more than once a week.

“I shop here because it’s our store, the only grocery store in Ivanhoe,” Mack said. “I like the products and the prices. The service is always excellent.”

Rebecca Johnson said it’s helpful to have a grocery store in the nearest town. She lives in Shaokatan Township southwest of Ivanhoe.

“I believe in shopping locally,” Johnson said. “It’s a pleasure to shop at Ivanhoe Foods because of the friendly atmosphere. I value the convenience and the way it has strong community support.”