Harvest to shut store on South Street in JP

I have to say that I'll be a bit sad to see it go, even though much of the food there is way out of my price range (and out of stock). It was nice having a store within a 5-7 minute walk from my apartment, and now I won't have that luxury anymore. Going to Stop & Shop or Whole Foods is such a pain when you've already headed home for the night, or have already been on that side of JP and conveniently forgot your wallet (happens to me all. the. time.). At least by the time this location closes, I'll be well into biking for commute/pleasure again.

As for the Wash. St. location, been once. It's nice, but getting over there is a pain and I don't even live that far away.

But predictable. I like this little store, and it's easier for me to get to than the Forest Hills store.

Can't imagine this place will become anything except a liquor store, given that the off-premises license already exists. Or can Harvest sell that seperately?

That store had an odd smell, the inside looked like hell, the prices weren't competitive, and the employees would act like you just killed a baby if you failed to bring your own reusable grocery bag. Good stores stay in business.

Not surprised, given the high prices, questionable quality, and spotty customer service I've seen at the Cambridge branch. It's really too bad but I don't know what they are thinking, you can't stay competitive with an image like that.

its South Street landlord did not accede to "dramatically lowering the rent and reducing the term of the lease" to help the co-op make up the 32% drop in sales since 2009.

So they thought the landlord was running a charity? Do they accept 32% less from their customers when they lose their jobs? F'n hippies.

A 32% drop in sales yet they name the landlords unwillingness to accede as a main reason for closing.

Everyone's fault but their own.

Three years ago profits were distributed to the members. That was based on the business of only two stores at the time. After the Washington Street store opened the Board of B.S. declared no profits would be distributed due to the costs of moving the Cambridge store and opening the Washington Street store. This year there is no excuse for a supposed lack of profit. They are just declaring that there is no profit.

Meanwhile each year that Harvest supposedly does not make a profit they still distribute money to non-profits. Since these distributions are not expenses they must come from profits. So how can Harvest not make a profit when they are distributing money that is not an expense?

Is the South Street store not making a profit or is that a lie? Again, when there were only two stores Harvest made enough profit to return part of the profit to member-owners and make contributions to non-profits. If the South Street store was not making a profit then it would have been a drain on Harvest as a business. If the 2nd store was such a drain and yet a profit was earned then the Cambridge store must have been doing a fantastic amount of business. Doubtful.

Harvest's management is blaming the supposed lack of profit on Whole Foods. Perhaps the actual reason is that Harvest cannibalized its own market by opening the Washington Street store. But the Harvest management refuses to admit that they shot themselves in the foot by opening a store than is less than a mile away.

Or perhaps the intention was to shutter the South Street store all along. They were just waiting for the lease to expire.

I believe that Harvest Co-op stopped acting as a co-op and became a fiefdom of its managers several years ago. It's Board of Directors are nice people but are apparently ineffective.

It is ludicrous that a grocery store can not make a profit at this location. It is a perfect location for a quintessential neighborhood store with the advantage of being surrounded by people with ample disposable income (i.e., able to afford higher prices at stores such as ... Harvest and Whole Foods). A parking lot is not required for a store that perfectly situated for people to do their regular shopping on a walk in basis. Harvest's management acknowledged this when they opened the Washington Street store by declaring they would reconfigure the South Street store to better serve what they knew is a majority walk-in customer base (never happened). If the groceries were desirable in quality, type and availability, if the store was clean, if the equipment not frequently broken down, in other words, if the store was run with a design to be a success, then the store would most likely be very successful.

Treating employees well would help. I've heard too many stories from people who left Harvest because they refused to be treated like crap.

The Washington Street store may survive. But the store will have to match Whole Foods in layout, presentation and product availability. They will have to also compete against chains much larger: Stop and Shop, Whole Foods and Wegman's when that store opens in the Fenway. Each of the stores have parking. So if someone will go to the trouble of driving to a grocery store why stop at a half-assed co-op that is frequently out of of product when they can go to a store that has a stronger committment to both product diversity, availability and over all store quality.