PCC to Reopen Downtown Seattle Store

PCC Community Markets will reopen its downtown Seattle store.

The Seattle-based co-op grocer will return to its former location at Fourth Avenue and Union Street in the second half of next year. The new store will be smaller, occupying only a portion of its former space. The grocer says it is “contractually obligated” to its long-term lease obligation. The former store was open for two years before PCC shuttered it last January.

The 6,500-square-foot store will carry a limited selection of grocery and pantry items, including prepared foods and a deli. PCC President and CERO Krish Srinivasan says the new concept “promises significantly better economics” than a full-service grocery store.

The upscale grocer will move its corporate headquarters into the remaining space adjacent to the new store, and will not renew its current office lease when it expires next year. The original store was 19,000 square feet.

“As a community-owned grocer, our business decisions strive to balance people, planet and profit,” Srinivasan said in a news release. “We believe that recommitting to good food in Seattle’s city center while also meaningfully reducing the cost of administrative office overhead is a good example of how, at PCC, purpose and profit are two sides of the same coin.”

Seattle-based PCC, founded in 1953, boasts more than 115,000 members and operates 15 stores across the region.