Locavore Marketplace Opens to Bend Shoppers

Local producers gain a second retail outlet in Bend as the nonprofit's Discovery West location opens.

Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Openings & Closings

Locavore Marketplace Opens to Bend Shoppers

Live Poll

Would you buy groceries at a local producer marketplace instead of a chain store?

Central Oregon Locavore, a nonprofit marketplace, opens its Discovery West location in Bend on November 19, 2026, its first marketplace expansion in 17 years. Shoppers can preorder locally raised turkeys and holiday items ahead of Thanksgiving.

Why it matters

The expansion gives regional producers a second retail outlet and gives Bend shoppers a closer point of purchase for local food. Locavore says the second marketplace is meant to make choosing local food an everyday habit rather than a seasonal one.

The Close the Gap campaign has raised $65,000 of its $100,000 goal, with a $20,000 anonymous match needing $8,000 more in donations to unlock. Locavore's roughly 200 regional producers receive about 65 cents of each dollar spent, while about 98 cents stays in the regional economy.

The players

Central Oregon Locavore

A Bend-based nonprofit marketplace that connects residents with roughly 200 regional food producers and has operated for 17 years.

Rickety Bridge Ranch

A Redmond, Oregon producer participating in the Locavore network of local food suppliers.

The details

Locavore has secured a line of credit to open Discovery West before Thanksgiving, and the campaign's remaining goal is aimed at reducing borrowed funds and completing the buildout. The marketplace will operate daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and shoppers can preorder the nonprofit's 100 local turkeys, Thanksgiving meal kits, and holiday baked goods for pickup. Community members can also make tax-deductible donations toward the expansion.

November 19, 2026: Grand opening and ribbon-cutting begin at 9:30 a.m.
Beginning November 19, 2026: Discovery West opens daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Market Landscape

The Discovery West opening ends Locavore's 17 years as a single-location operation and extends its model of returning most sales to local producers into a second Bend-area store. The expansion is financed in part through a line of credit and community fundraising rather than a single large capital source.

Bend shoppers gain a second local-food retail location with daily hours from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and preorder options for Thanksgiving items. Operators who supply or compete in local food retail should note that the marketplace is now a larger channel for regional producers.

The takeaway

Operators in regional food supply can treat Discovery West as a new outlet for local producer sales, with holiday preorders as an early test of demand. Anyone considering a donation toward the remaining $35,000 should review the campaign page directly before giving, since the $20,000 match depends on reaching its unlock threshold.

What happens next

The Discovery West marketplace opens on November 19, 2026, with the grand opening ceremony at 9:30 a.m. The Close the Gap campaign remains open toward its $100,000 goal, with the $20,000 match requiring $8,000 more in donations to unlock in full.