TPSS LIMITED

What TPSS LIMITED does

Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op (legal name: Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op; DBA: TPSS Co-op) is a member-owned consumer cooperative operating a single physical natural-foods grocery store at 201 Ethan Allen Avenue in Takoma Park, Maryland, founded in 1981 and serving the Takoma Park/Silver Spring submarket of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The store operates seven merchandising departments — grocery, produce, refrigerated, bulk, wellness, beer and wine, and front end — sourcing from over 200 local producers, regional food hub Common Market, and UNFI (which accounts for over 60% of sales under a mandated NCG purchasing agreement). Supporting infrastructure includes an online order/pickup system via provisions.coop, member-owner case-order discounts, and a partnership with Crossroads Community Food Network for a USDA-funded SNAP produce match.

The business is governed by an 11-member elected Board of Representatives and employs 45–50 staff across management, merchandising, and front-end functions. Staff are represented by the International Workers of the World (IWW) under a contract running through April 2029 with wages scaling from $18.42 to $23.15 per hour and 100% employer-paid health insurance. Revenue is generated primarily through retail grocery sales (approximately $10M annually, with stated weekly purchasing of $200K), supplemented by one-time $100 refundable member equity contributions (with installment options), case-order transaction fees, and SNAP-funded produce-match subsidies. Membership is optional but provides a 10% monthly shopping discount, voting rights, and credit-union partnership eligibility; the co-op has grown to over 11,500 member-owners.

TPSS is currently planning a second cooperative grocery location, with a financial pro forma completed and a member capital campaign in formation, following the lessons of its prior Grubb Road store (2001–2013) that closed after extended underperformance. Distribution is exclusively physical retail plus customer pickup; there is no home delivery and no third-party marketplace exposure.

Name

TPSS LIMITED

Legal name

Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op

Website

https://tpss.coop

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

TPSS Co-op is a member-owned cooperative natural-foods grocery store in Takoma Park, Maryland, serving over 11,500 member-owners and the broader Takoma Park/Silver Spring community with locally sourced groceries and wellness products from a single flagship location while planning a second store.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cooperative Grocery Retail

NAICS

Specialty Food Retailers (4452), Food and Beverage Retailers (445)

SIC

Retail-Grocery Stores (5411)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYCRAHALAA

Member-Owned Food Cooperatives

Consumer Products & Retail/Grocery & Food Retail/Food Co-ops & Community Grocery

SECONDARYCRAHAEAJ

Natural/Organic Food Co-ops & Community Natural Grocers

Consumer Products & Retail/Grocery & Food Retail/Natural/Organic & Health Food Stores

SECONDARYCRAHALAH

Food Co-ops with Online Ordering & Pickup/Delivery

Consumer Products & Retail/Grocery & Food Retail/Food Co-ops & Community Grocery

Keywords

• Cooperative grocery store
• Natural foods retail
• Member-owned grocery
• Local produce sourcing
• Community-owned supermarket

Headquarters

HQ city

Takoma Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Grocery Sales: The primary revenue stream comes from selling natural foods, produce, groceries, wellness products, beer and wine, and refrigerated items to shoppers. Over 60% of sales come from UNFI products. The store sells from over 200 local vendors and sources from regional food hub Common Market.
2. Membership Equity Payments: New members pay a $100 lifetime equity fee (refundable upon departure) with payment plan options of two $50 payments or ten $10 payments within one year. This provides capital investment to the cooperative.
3. Special Order / Case Orders: Member-owners can place full case special orders through the Buying Club with 10% discount. Orders picked up within 7 days.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

TPSS Co-op operates a member-owned cooperative natural foods grocery store in Takoma Park, MD, selling grocery, produce, refrigerated, bulk, wellness, beer and wine, and front-end products sourced from over 200 local producers and primary distributor UNFI. The store accepts walk-in shoppers and supports online ordering with customer pickup at the storefront.

Product overview

TPSS Co-op is a single-location member-owned cooperative grocery store operating as a unified retail business. The core offering is the natural foods grocery store with seven departments (grocery, produce, refrigerated, bulk, wellness, beer and wine, front end). Supporting the core store, the co-op offers online ordering through Provisions, a member-ownership program with shopping benefits, Fresh Checks SNAP partnership for produce discounts, Co+op Deals discount programs, Co-op Explorers kids program, Interior Federal Credit Union partnership, community engagement events, and democratic governance participation. The store does not operate as a platform-plus-modules architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Takoma Park Silver Spring Food Co-op (Retail Grocery Store) A member-owned cooperative natural foods grocery store at 201 Ethan Allen Ave in Takoma Park, MD, selling local and organic grocery, produce, refrigerated, bulk, wellness, beer and wine, and front-end products to community shoppers. Open daily 8 AM - 10 PM.
• Member-Ownership Program Cooperative membership program where members pay a $100 lifetime equity fee (refundable upon departure; payable as two $50 payments or ten $10 payments within one year) and receive a 20% welcome coupon, 10% monthly discount, voting rights, case order discounts, and eligibility for Interior Federal Credit Union membership.
• Buying Club (Case Orders) Member-owner bulk case order service providing 10% discount on full-case special orders, with pickup available within 7 days at the co-op storefront.
• Online Order Pickup Online ordering for member and general shoppers with in-store pickup during 9 AM - 7 PM, supporting web-cart and provisions.coop case order flows from the same Takoma Park storefront.

Quantifiable outcome

• Sales per square foot exceeding $2,300 (vs industry average of $500)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Co+op Grocers (NCG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025TPSS is a member of National Cooperative Grocers, a cooperative of over 150 food co-ops nationwide. NCG provides volume discount pricing through UNFI mandatory purchasing agreement, operational support, financial feasibility analysis, site selection assistance for expansion, and design feasibility support. The relationship enables competitive pricing and shared expertise.
• UNFI (United Natural Foods Inc.)coreOthersUNFI delivers 4 times per week and provides majority of center store Grocery, Wellness, Frozen and Refrigerated products. UNFI products account for over 60% of co-op sales. NCG membership mandates purchasing from UNFI for volume discount pricing.
• Common MarketminorOthersRegional food hub that aggregates and distributes products from local growers and producers in the mid-Atlantic region. Expanded co-op's access to dozens of regional products since 2018 partnership.
• Crossroads Community Food NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to offer Fresh Checks program providing 50% match on produce purchases for SNAP recipients. Program funded by USDA GusNIP grant and TPSS Feed a Neighbor Fund donations. Automatically applies 50% discount when SNAP used at checkout.
• Interior Federal Credit UnionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership since 2010 offering TPSS members eligibility to join Interior Federal Credit Union. Members select 'Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op' from eligibility dropdown to join. Special offers available for co-op members.
• Small Things MatterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization hosting weekly food distributions at co-op location. TPSS supports through round-up at register campaigns and donations. All-volunteer organization addressing food insecurity.
• Rhizome DCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of annual Co-op Film Festival (third year in 2026). DIY arts space and community organization. TPSS provides sponsorship and participation. Rhizome recently purchased new building with ticket sales supporting their facility.
• DC Community Wealth BuildersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition of cooperatives, small businesses, nonprofits, and community members working to expand economic opportunity and build shared wealth in DC's low-wealth communities. TPSS co-hosting Building Community Wealth presentations and discussions.
• Four Seasons ProduceminorOthersFresh produce vendor delivering up to 6 times per week. Essential for organic produce meeting co-op standards and year-round variety.
• Albert's OrganicsminorOthersRefrigerated product vendor delivering up to 6 times per week. Provides organic produce meeting co-op standards.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Giant Food: Dominant mainstream grocery chain in the DC/Maryland market. Competes for general grocery basket share in TPSS's trade area despite different positioning.
• MOM's Organic Market: DC-area natural/organic grocery chain with multiple locations. Closest regional natural foods competitor to TPSS, though privately held rather than cooperatively owned.
• Natural Grocers: National natural and organic grocery chain. Comparable product mix and customer demographic to TPSS, but operates as a publicly traded specialty grocer rather than a cooperative.
• Whole Foods Market: Largest natural/organic grocer with multiple DC-area locations. Competes for the same health-conscious shoppers but operates at vastly greater scale as an Amazon-owned corporation.
• Harris Teeter: Upscale grocery chain with significant DC-area presence. Competes for mid-to-upper income shoppers in the Takoma Park/Silver Spring corridor.

Direct peers

• Seward Co-op: Member-owned food cooperative in Minneapolis with two locations, emphasizing local/organic and community values—mirroring TPSS's planned second-store trajectory and cooperative structure.
• GreenStar Cooperative Market: Member-owned natural foods cooperative in Ithaca, NY. Comparable in cooperative governance, natural foods focus, and single-region community retail format.
• Davis Food Co-op: Member-owned community food cooperative in Davis, CA operating a single store with strong local-sourcing and education programs—closely analogous to TPSS in scale and mission.
• Wheatsville Food Co-op: Single-location member-owned food cooperative in New Orleans operating on similar cooperative principles, natural foods focus, and community engagement model as TPSS.
• PCC Community Markets: Large member-owned natural foods cooperative in the Seattle area with multiple locations. Most directly comparable food co-op to TPSS in terms of member-owned governance, natural/organic focus, and local sourcing emphasis.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/tpsscoop
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tpss-co-op

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about TPSS LIMITED