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Rainbow Grocery history
Rainbow Grocery company history timeline
In the summer 1975, Rainbow Grocery opened a storefront on 16th Street in the Mission District of San Francisco.
In 1976, ownership was transferred to a nonprofit corporation.
Rainbow’s focus on food and health, rather than broader social change, may have helped it survive the implosion of the People’s Food System, which collapsed in 1977 under the strain of political struggles that turned, at times, violent.
Rainbow’s first substantial expansion, in 1978, was the opening of a general store (selling vitamins, dry goods, housewares, books, clothing etc.). It was located a few doors down from the grocery store.
Rainbow Foods opened in April, 1980 upstairs in the old Emporium Mall downtown.
Prior to 1982, all decisions were made in “Joint Meetings” of all workers from the Grocery and General Store divisions.
Another significant organizational development made in preparation for the move was creation of a Board of Directors elected from within the membership, who met regularly beginning in 1982.
After a move to a much larger store on 15th Street and Mission in 1983, revenue shot up 60 percent in the first year alone, and the staff quickly tripled.
In 1993, the store cast off all remnants of its origins and reorganized as a worker-owned corporation, which brought workers a living wage and better benefits.
All the planning and hard work came to fruition with the opening at 1745 Folsom Street on April 25, 1996.
In 1996, aided by the city, Rainbow bought a warehouse on Folsom and Division with 17,500 square feet of retail space.
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Rainbow Grocery competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Ranch Market | 1984 | $280.0M | 1,300 | 32 |
| H Mart | - | - | 87 | 12 |
| Giant Eagle | 1931 | $8.9B | 37,000 | 400 |
| Fair Market | 1997 | $26.0M | 125 | - |
| Clean'n'Press | 1987 | $610,000 | 10 | - |
| Good Earth Natural Foods | 1969 | $5.9M | 130 | - |
| Hewitts Garden Center | 1964 | $1.8M | 25 | - |
| Sav A Step | - | $25.0M | 200 | - |
| U Save Foods, Inc | 1958 | $54.1M | 1,475 | - |
| Rochester Imports | - | $2.8M | 15 | - |
Rainbow Grocery history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Rainbow Grocery, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Rainbow Grocery. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Rainbow Grocery. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Rainbow Grocery. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Rainbow Grocery and its employees or that of Zippia.
Rainbow Grocery may also be known as or be related to RAINBOW GROCERY COOPERATIVE, Rainbow Grocery, Rainbow Grocery Cooperative and Rainbow Grocery Cooperative, Inc.