The early-morning sun barely peeks when Melissa Robbins begins her work day.
After arriving at 5 a.m. to a place she calls home, Robbins pads through a newly remodeled building and makes one of her many stops - the coffee machine.
As the coffee brews, Robbins turns on another device that will help keep her awake for the eight-hour shift.
Depending on what kind of mood she's in, her radio cranks bluegrass, hip-hop, or National Public Radio at the highest volume.
Once her preliminary tasks are complete, Robbins is ready to do what she takes very seriously.
Robbins is the produce manager at the East Lansing Food Co-op, or ELFCO, 4960 Northwind Drive.
Earlier this year, the nearly 4,000-member-owned cooperative grocery store created a new look to keep up with store competitors and to help maintain a sense of community.
When ELFCO was established in 1976, Robbins said, the store provided a service that wasn't available elsewhere. But with the growing number of people buying organic foods and other products, ELFCO isn't the only place where shelves are lined with organically produced products.
"We have to keep up with the trends," Robbins said. "We are still a business, and we have a bottom line to watch out for here."
Because of ELFCO'S recent expansion and renovation, the store size has doubled, and enhanced lighting highlights the selection of organic products and bulk items lining the shelves.
Robbins said one of the store's goals is to support local suppliers. When buying from a company that purchases from a mass supplier, the majority of that money leaves local communities, Robbins said. Purchasing products from farmers in Michigan, Robbins said, helps keep dollars local. Additionally, when members join the co-op, their fee actually pays for a share in the company. But not all of the store's products are bought from local suppliers, she said.
"It's really a source for people to support Michigan," Robbins said. "Even if it does cost us more money, you know your neighbor has a job because we can support them."
Melissa Estelle, 32, said she was excited when she visited the newly remodeled co-op for the first time. She said the new look has helped curb some of her worries.
"I'm always concerned that places like this won't make it," Estelle said as she emptied coffee beans into a brown bag. "It's nice to see them have a new look and carry products in bulk."
Estelle, who has been a member for several years, said she doesn't mind driving from her Lansing home to shop at the co-op.
"It's worth the drive, and I'm keeping money local," she said, holding up a brand of organic cheddar cheese.
"I try not to shop in chain stores, and the co-op meets my needs," Estelle said.
ELFCO board member Jeanne Donado said not only is it the co-op's goal to become a central location for people in the area to buy locally grown and Michigan-made products, but to serve as a network for other opportunities.
"We want people to come, and we want to be an inclusive place," Donado said.
Membership is not required to shop at the co-op, but Donado said during the years, attracting new members has been a challenge. Since the expansion and renovation, there has been an outpour of membership input. But more ideas are needed for expanding outside the physical realm, she said.
"We are at a point where people don't have to come to the co-op," she said. "They may say, 'Why should I go to the co-op? ? when I can go to a store two blocks away?"
Changing the co-op's model is just one way Donado hopes to attract new members. She added that the idea of expansion was birthed nearly five years ago when sales started declining. Now that the expansion project is almost complete, Donado said there is still work to finish.
"Some of the next steps are deciding whether we want to change our name," Donado said. "We need to push big to get more membership involvement. No matter how we do it, we'll remain very optimistic and excited about the future."
