Burnt Cove Market - Stonington, ME

Burnt Cove Market
Opened: 1971

Owner: employee owned

Previous Tenants: none

Cooperative: none

Location: 1 S Burnt Cove Rd, Stonington, ME

Photographed: June 14, 2022

I talk a lot about cooperatives here on The Market Report, and generally I'm referring to what's more accurately called retailers' cooperatives, groups of independent grocery store owners that share resources like warehouses, distribution contracts, marketing, and brand names (think Wakefern or Key Food). Lately, we've also been seeing more stores that are community cooperatives, or grocery stores that the general public can buy an ownership stake in. There's still a third type of grocery cooperative, although it's one that doesn't generally get a lot of attention: employee cooperatives, where the people who work in the store also own a small share of the store itself. (This is similar to employee-owned supermarkets, though in some cases the employees don't own the full company -- such as Publix, where employees own around 80%).

What does this have to do with the Burnt Cove Market? Well, this 12,000 square foot supermarket (one of just two here on Deer Isle) is owned by the Island Employee Cooperative, or IEC, which also owns the other Deer Isle supermarket along with a hardware store.

These businesses were previously owned by Vern and Sandra Seile, who in 2014 transferred ownership to the cooperative. You can read more on their website here.

In this supermarket, the produce department runs along the right side of the store, while grocery aisles go side-to-side in the middle (including a liquor department at the front). Meat and deli are on the back wall, with dairy and frozen on the left side of the store.

This store is supplied by C&S and carries Best Yet brand products.

The entirety of Deer Isle has a population of only around 2500, which of course increases in summer tourism months.

Cold beer and dairy are on the left side of the store along with baked goods.

As you can see, this store is on the older side, including the fixtures.

The registers are up at the front in what might be a small expansion out of the original sales floor space.

Also on the property (along with the hardware store) is this building, which could be an older home of the grocery store or just an extra storage or other outbuilding with the sign for the grocery store on it. It's now attached to the hardware store.

Unfortunately, I haven't been to the other supermarket that the IEC owns here, which is called The Galley Grocery. But tomorrow, The Market Report is headed back up to the mainland for a look at the grocery stores in the larger town in this area!