Farmers On Duty opens round-the-clock grocery store in Squamish

It's 10 p.m., and you suddenly realize you have no fruit for the kids’ lunches the next day.

Previously, with local stores closed, you would be out of luck and the kids left with whatever you had on hand.

This is the kind of scenario the folks at Farmers On Duty aim to solve with their newest initiative.

They have opened Squamish’s first 24-hour, self-serve grocery store at The Local Barn, in the Squamish Town Hub, near Locavore Bar & Grill, on Mamquam Road.

Owner Felipe Hidalgo says the company’s second location was finding that the clientele wanted to come in at various hours, making it tricky to staff.

Going 24-hours serves the growing and busy community best, he said.

“We are in the essential industry, and for this reason, we are open 24 hours—because when you have essentials, similar to a pharmacy, do you need it open 24 hours?”

The store offers the basics, milk, bread—including gluten-free—fruit, vegetables and fish, and other items, such as honey.

The products are sourced as close to home as possible; for example, the honey comes from Lillooet

How it works

Farmers on Duty’s Katie Salzborn walked through how it works for a first-time customer.

First, the customer uses a cellphone with internet access to scan the QR code at the door.

A link pops up on the phone asking for an email address.

Once an email is entered, an unlock button will pop up and the door can be opened.

The first time takes about 45 seconds to get in.

After that, because the email is already entered, it takes even less than that.

Once inside, customers can shop for what they need.

“The whole space is yours. It's like your private little store with all your things. So we have meat, cheese, dairy—all the eggs, all the dairy is shipped weekly here. It's all super fresh,” she said.

“You just basically grab what you need and go to the self-checkout.”

At the kiosk checkout, customers search for and enter the items on the display, and then pay.

It is a cashless system, so a credit or banking card is required.

Customers are encouraged to bring their own reusable bags, though there are paper bags available.

“Voila!” Salzborn said after demonstrating how to check out.

“The door is open for you, and so you just have to make sure the door is completely shut.”

Won’t things be stolen?

Asked about the possibility of people stealing from the store, Hidalgo responds basically that there is trust that is then verified.

“[Squamish] is a very good and strong community,” he says. “This is the first thing. We believe in the people.”

That belief in the goodness of locals is also backed up by installed security, including several cameras.

Hidalgo also believes that people face personal karma if they choose to be dishonest.

“If the people steal ... when they go off outside, bad things are coming in their life,” he says.

The store has been operating a little over a week and so far, there has been no theft, he adds.

“In the first week, absolutely no people stole nothing. We love Squamish, we love the community, and we believe in the people, especially when the people have a good thing,” he says.

He says that so far, the response from the public has been very positive.

Customers have been taking advantage of the 24-hour offerings. Most customers have been visiting between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m., as well as early mornings.

The original Queensway location remains staffed, as it isn’t practical to transition to self-serve there, where there are 1,000 or more items on offer and at greater quantities, Hidalgo says.

Follow Farmers on Duty on Instagram, Facebook, or its website.

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