Laid over the 2027 calendar, the West Chester Growers Market's published winter pattern works out to about 18 market hours at Church and Chestnut streets from January through April. Downtown, the West Chester Co-op at 204 W. Market St. is open 84 hours in a single week. Several of the same local producers sell at both.
The co-op got the ribbon-cutting, the speeches and the headlines this fall. The schedule change that makes it useful to downtown comes after Christmas.
Eighteen hours of market, January through April
The Growers Market runs every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., May through December. Its winter season covers January through April, on the first, third and fifth Saturdays only, from 10 a.m. to noon. The weekly listing on the Downtown West Chester calendar runs through Dec. 26, 2026.
The market publishes that pattern and does not post a date-by-date 2027 calendar. Counted against the 2027 calendar, the pattern gives three winter markets in January, which has five Saturdays, and two in each of February, March and April. That works out to nine mornings of two hours each, assuming the pattern holds. The co-op is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week, and you don't have to be a member to shop there.
| West Chester Growers Market | West Chester Co-op | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Church and Chestnut streets | 204 W. Market St. |
| Through Dec. 26 | Every Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Daily, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| January through April | 1st, 3rd and 5th Saturdays, 10 a.m. to noon | Daily, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Hours in a typical winter week | 0 or 2 | 84 |
The Growers Market is an open-air Saturday morning, and the co-op is a 2,800-square-foot store across from the Chester County Justice Center. The table matters because of what happens to the vendors once the market's schedule thins out.
The same names show up at both places
The co-op's own vendor roster overlaps with the market's. Vera Pasta is a family-run fresh pasta maker that started in West Chester in 2011, about two miles from the store, and it appears on both the co-op roster and the Growers Market's member-vendor list. So does Nutty Novelties, which started at the Lansdale Farmers' Market in 2012 and is based in Souderton. Mindfully Mina's, a West Chester snack maker started in 2024, rotates through the market as a guest vendor and is stocked at the co-op.
The market says vendor attendance varies week to week, and both rosters are live lists. Still, a household that buys Vera Pasta on Saturday mornings now has a second place to find it on a Tuesday evening in February.
Beyond the overlap, MyChesCo reported that the co-op's nearest suppliers include several West Chester businesses. The co-op's vendor page lists how far each one is from the store:
- Poppy Ski's Pierogi, started in West Chester in 2025, makes Polish pierogi from a family recipe in potato and cheese, jalapeño and cabbage. About 1 mile away.
- Golden Valley Roasters, a family-owned coffee roaster in West Chester since 1986. About 1 mile away.
- The Jawnery Bakery, started in West Chester in 2022. About 1 mile away.
- Sugartown Smoked Specialties, a West Chester maker of small-batch smoked seafood, meat, poultry and cheese since 1992. About 2 miles away.
- Appleville Treats, plant-based dog treats made in West Chester since 2021. About 2 miles away.
Other Chester County suppliers include Bailys Dairy, Chaikhana Chai, Good Girls Bakery, Baba's Brew and Swarmbustin' Honey. Unruly Nature and Sneaky Brew round out the West Chester names. Produce comes from Bryn Clovis Farm in Malvern, about nine miles away, from Paradise Organics and Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative in Lancaster County, and from Four Seasons Produce in Ephrata. The co-op defines "local" as roughly within 100 miles. VISTA.Today lists the departments as produce, grocery staples, bulk goods, meat and cheese, bakery items, and grab-and-go food.
In practice, many of the small makers that downtown shoppers know from Saturday mornings now have a shelf that stays open past noon.
Eleven years to get a store open
The store took this long because the co-op spent most of a decade without a building. Residents formed it in 2015 and spent 2016 through 2019 on outreach and pop-up markets. From October 2020 to 2022 it ran a temporary market at 142 E. Market St. In September 2022 it reported 486 owners and a goal of 600. By March 2023 it had 515 members and still no permanent location.
In the summer of 2024 the co-op settled on its current site, the former Market Street Print shop, which had moved to 590 Hannum Ave., the Daily Local News reported. An August 2025 capital campaign put the projected opening cost at $1.8 million, backed by more than 70 member-owners, local lenders and the Chester County Economic Development Council. In September 2025, VISTA.Today reported a $75,000 construction donation from Bill Ronayne, owner of Brandywine Valley HVAC. According to the West Chester-Goshen Courier, building permits went to the borough on Dec. 16, 2025, and construction started Feb. 5.
The store opened in late August and held its grand opening the first week of October. Board member Judy Carrino told the crowd, as the Daily Local News reported:
"We believed, we persisted, we built it, we did it. Every person who carries the baton brings us here. For 11 years it just kept on going."
At the same event, Bridget Palombo of The Food Trust announced a $75,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative. The Courier described the store as West Chester's first grocery store in decades. It reported that store team leader Issa Ostrander oversees one full-time and 11 part-time employees, and that volunteer Sue Patterson, member No. 8 since 2015, now stocks shelves and prices items.
Joining is optional, and parking has its own rules
Membership grew from 845 member-owners at the August opening, per MyChesCo, to 868 by early October, and the co-op is still taking new members. A member-owner share is a one-time $400 payment, made in full or in $25 monthly installments on a credit card. The co-op also offers an assisted-payment application. Owners get an equal vote, elect the board, can suggest products, and get member specials and events.
The co-op sits next to a parking garage and the bus terminal. Its parking guidance covers what you need for a quick stop. Street parking is free on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and all day Sunday. Meters run Monday through Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m. to midnight, and Saturday from 5 p.m. to midnight. Two November dates catch people out. Meters are enforced on General Election Day, Nov. 3, and on Veterans Day, Nov. 11. They are not enforced on Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Through Dec. 26, both run at full schedule
For the next two months, downtown's calendar puts extra people on the sidewalks around both locations. The co-op stays open every day, and the Growers Market keeps its weekly Saturdays.
- Friday, Nov. 6. November First Friday, with extended shop hours and free on-street parking after 5 p.m.
- Nov. 21 to Dec. 12. The holiday window decorating contest, with professional judging plus a People's Choice Award. Winners are announced Monday, Dec. 14.
- Nov. 27 to 29. Small Business Weekend, with free on-street parking all three days. Lots and garages are not included.
- Friday, Dec. 4. December First Friday falls on the same night as the tree lighting at 6:30 p.m. and the Christmas parade at 7 p.m. MyChesCo reported that this year's parade has an America250 theme, and that organizers were planning a new Santa float and more marching bands.
- Saturday, Dec. 26. The last weekly Growers Market of 2026.
- Saturday, Jan. 2, 2027. The first Saturday of January, which is the first winter-market date if the published first, third and fifth Saturday pattern holds. The market lists winter hours of 10 a.m. to noon.
Under that same pattern, the next winter market falls two weeks later. The co-op's hours stay the same.
Gary Scheivert's family has been in real estate in Delaware and Chester counties since 1969, and a new year-round grocery on Market Street is the kind of change we track on the borough's blocks. If you're weighing a move to or within downtown West Chester, or want to talk about what changes like this mean for a home near the courthouse, Gary Scheivert & Associates is glad to talk it through with you directly. Contact Us.
