Pictured top are Matt Bills, Milford Regional Manager, Distribution – South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, with his daughter, Marigold, and The Community Grocer General Manager Georgia Savage.
Supporting locals is the goal of the Milford Community Connection Program – and we were delighted to help fund a new market location for The Community Grocer.
Check out Debney Meadows Primary School in Flemington any given Saturday between 8.30am – 12.30pm, and you’ll find The Community Grocer offering 140 types of produce to happy customers at around 35% less than other food outlets.
“We’re a not-for-profit social enterprise that runs weekly pop-ups to reduce the physical, economic and social barriers to accessing affordable, quality and culturally relevant foods,” says The Community Grocer General Manager Georgia Savage. “We currently operate four markets each week – at public housing estates in Fitzroy, Carlton and Flemington, and also in Pakenham.”
Funding from the Milford Community Connection Program helped establish the Flemington location. “Our markets rely on donations and grant funding to deliver weekly access to affordable produce,” says Georgia. “We used this funding to support the launch and operations of our Flemington market, including supporting the wages of the Market Manager and Market Assistant, and to purchase essential equipment to run the market. We also generated some Grocer Gift Cards for the local community, so people can shop at the market with dignity and choice, and buy the food they want and need.”
The Community Grocer was nominated for a grant from the Connection Program by James Lindberg, Director and Senior Investment Adviser with Evans & Partners. “There are plenty of charitable groups that do fantastic work but benefit from large profiles and have access to large grants and donations,” says James. “The Community Grocer does fantastic work but, given their size, have not yet had that benefit. I though applying for a grant on their behalf would be an amazing opportunity for them.”
James says Georgia and her team were “over the moon” when they heard about the donation. “This is the second year we’ve been able to assist them through the Milford Community Connection Program. The best thing about it is the ability to connect professional contacts with individuals who are dedicating their day-to-day lives to charitable and societal causes to drive meaningful impact. It’s extremely fulfilling.”
