PCC co-op takes a new middle name

Seattle-based cooperative food retailer PCC Natural Markets on Wednesday introduced a new name, logo and branding campaign that it said better reflects its mission and heritage. Now called “PCC Community Markets,” the co-op also announced a range of new offerings celebrating its local relationships while meeting Seattle shoppers’ growing appetites for healthful, organic and made-from-scratch food.

“Since our modest beginnings as a food buying club, started by a group of Seattle families in 1953, PCC has always been more than just a grocery store,” Cate Hardy, PCC Community Markets CEO, said in a statement. “As a community-owned co-op, we think about things differently, from our dedication to staff and our deep relationships with local producers, farmers and ranchers; to what makes it onto store shelves; to why we believe cooking food from scratch in each store every day is one of the most important things we do. The ‘why’ behind every decision we make starts with our community, and we want our name to reflect that commitment.”

PCC also announced new offerings centered on local producers, organic foods and healthy eating that will be available in stores later this fall including a private label organic, non-GMO, grass-fed, animal-welfare certified yogurt in partnership with Othllo, Wash.-based dairy Pure Éire. The new line, available Oct. 1 and exclusively at PCC, comes in peach, strawberry, vanilla bean and plain flavors. The yogurt joins a thoughtfully curated collection of PCC private label items, including organic milk; organic, fair trade, shade-grown, locally roasted coffee; frozen, local, organic blueberries; local, antibiotic-free ground sausage; local, handcrafted pastas; and its entire collection of made-from-scratch deli soups, salads, salad dressings and entrees.

PCC also said it would launch a private label line of fresh, ready-to-cook meal kit components. The offerings will include marinated and seasoned organic, non-GMO or grass-fed meats that shoppers can mix and match with fresh, organic vegetables. All the recipes are created and tested by PCC’s in-house chefs, pre-prepped and ready to cook. The meals will be available in November, initially at the Edmonds and Redmond PCC locations.

The co-op also said it would introduce a produce butcher under the Chop Shop name and a local spirits shop at its Edmonds and Redmond locations in November.

PCC will support the new name with a branding campaign that includes a new logo and revamped website and advertising. All stores on Saturday will host a community fair with fresh food samplings, live local entertainment, cooking demonstrations and educational store tours with a trained PCC nutrition educator. Additionally, “Little Free Cookbook Libraries” will be unveiled at the Bothell, Greenlake Aurora and View Ridge PCC stores to inspire recipe sharing and cooking from scratch.

PCC operates 10 stores exclusively in the Puget Sound area. Its Seattle stores are in the neighborhoods of Columbia City, Fremont, Green Lake, View Ridge and West Seattle, which will reopen in 2019. The co-op will open its Burien store in 2018 and has plans to open a new store in Seattle’s Madison Valley neighborhood in 2020.