Sacrifice. Balancing act. Labor of love. Talk to anyone who has run a small, independent grocery business in the era of huge national chains, takeovers, mergers, buyouts, private equity, international megacorporations, shareholder demands, shrinking margins, increasing labor costs, and general sticker shock, and you hear these terms a lot. 

You’ll also hear about the importance of being present, on the retail floor, observing every detail to hear what customers need. The owner of Safeway is not going to help you pick out a tomato or ring up your collard greens, but Cherry Sprout owner Nick O’Neill was working the produce section when I stopped in at the shop near Jefferson High School in North Portland one summer afternoon. The sentiment of first-time shoppers is often “I wish this was in my neighborhood,” he said. “It’s a beautiful dream for everyone to have a store like this.” 

There used to more little shops around the corner like Cherry Sprout, with produce, beer, and other essentials. “It’s harder than ever for small stores and mom-and-pop shops to make it, because only the super-high-volume stores can really be effective,” Green Zebra founder Lisa Sedlar told me by phone from Bellingham, where the former New Seasons CEO runs a couple of co-op stores after Green Zebra closed all its locations in 2023. Maybe it’s my fault. I lived right around the corner from a Green Zebra and went there all the time to pick up one or two things, but I spent most of my grocery budget at the Fred Meyer about a mile away, where that super-high volume Sedlar mentioned meant lower prices. 

I’m not the only one looking to save a buck. Bryan M. Vance of Stumptown Savings has found plenty of eager readers for his weekly deal roundups. He lists the current discounts at the grocery giants as well as places like People’s and Alberta Co-op; smaller regional chains such as Market of Choice and Chuck’s Fresh Markets; international havens Barbur World Foods, BooHan, and Uwajimaya; and unpredictable closeout stores like Daily Deals. While shoppers could use this info to pick the single cheapest place to go (often WinCo for a general grocery run, Vance has found), his lists are also a reminder that there are a lot of little shops around the corner, some of which we explore in our A-to-Z rundown of Portland grocery stores, past and present. They might be a little farther than right around the corner from where I live, but a detour from my regular routine can be a delicious adventure.

MARGARET SEILER
Editor in chief