December update from the General Manager

December 2, 2019

My name is Chris Roland, and I’m very honored to be able to call myself the General Manager of the Fredericksburg Food Co-op (FFC)!  I’ve been working in food co-ops for the last 17+ years and I’m so excited to bring that experience and passion for community-owned grocery to Fredericksburg. 

I want to thank everyone who came out to the meet-n-greet a couple of weeks ago and had a chance to see the store.  It was energizing and inspiring to meet so many of the folks responsible for the great work that’s been done here.  One of the primary reasons I was attracted to this opportunity was the amazing team that you’ve assembled; from the interest and investment from the community to the dedication and hard work from the many committees and board of directors. 

Along with the event at the store, my first whirlwind weekend in Fredericksburg was spent meeting Lawrence and Becky Latané of Blenheim Organic Gardens and Emmett Snead of Snead’s Asparagus Farm, valuable stakeholders in Fredericksburg’s agriculture community, attending my first FFC board meeting and getting caught up on all the amazing work our store committees have been doing to share the movement and build our base.  I had such a fun time in town and with all the great people, that by the end of my weekend, Fredericksburg was already starting to feel like home.   

Over the next couple of months I’ll be working closely with our team on our store layout and design, getting it ready for bids to be built.  We’ve got such a great space in such an optimal location and we’ll be working to maximize every square inch to make this the best grocery store we can!  We may not be as big as most of the big-box grocers in town, but I’ll be darned if we can’t be the best shopping experience in Fredericksburg!  You can bet that I’ll be sharing updates, news and drawings with you as they become available. 

Thanks again to all the folks who’ve made my welcome so warm in Fredericksburg and with the Co-op.  It really has been an amazing experience meeting everyone and hearing your visions and dreams for the store.  I hope that you all had a great holiday and know that next year, FFC will be putting food on your table for Thanksgiving. 

Chris Roland
General Manager