Twin Cities Co-op Partners history

Gallery: 1977: The Wedge Co-op originated in a garden-level apartment on W. Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis, about two blocks from the store's current location.

In 1979, the Wedge moved to Lyndale Avenue.

1982: Taste hails co-ops as the “general stores of the ’80s.” When you shop at a food co-op, you start down a new avenue in cooking.

1991: More of the above. “Most people’s ideas of co-ops are pretty outmoded,” said Gail Graham, general manager at Seward Co-op. “We’ve spent a great deal of capital on improving storefronts, on new computerized cash registers, better lighting and display.

Wedge had a member labor program in place until 1992, when it built a new store in the lot adjacent to its store.

The green patch program, introduced in 1996, rewarded members for bringing their own bags by giving them the option to donate 5 cents for each reused bag to a local environmental charity.

An addition which doubled the retail space was built in 1997.

In 1999, the co-op introduced a carnival as a fundraiser for Joyce Food Shelf.

2000: Food co-ops are in expansion mode, with eight out of 10 area co-ops in the throes of a major growth spurt. “It’s simple,” said E. Blake Ferris, owner services and market manager at Seward Community Co-op. “Natural and organic foods constitute the fastest growing segment of the food industry.”

In 2005, the co-op opened a second branch of its business–Linden Hills Natural Home.

2014: On the occasion of Lakewinds Food Co-op opening its third location, in Richfield: The Lakewinds expansion is one example of the demand — and success — of the now-40-year-old co-op system.

In 2015, the Wedge became the first consumer co-op in the Twin Cities metro area to unionize.

In 2016 the members voted to consolidate with Linden Hills Co-op, forming the Twin Cities Co-op Partnership (TCCP). The combined entity had 25,000 members and employed over 500 employees.

On July 1, 2017 the consolidation of Wedge and Linden Hills Co-op became official.