Buy Better Foods
Buy Better Foods, a recently opened organic market in Bed-Stuy, was many years in the making. Although owner Myriam Simpierre has spent most of her career managing retail stores, she’d always harbored the idea of starting her own business. She even had a solid concept: bringing organic foods to her “not 100% gentrified” section of Bed-Stuy and simplifying the shopping experience with in-store nutrition workshops.
“There's still a great presence of the old community here, and what's beautiful is, you can sense that they’re not going anywhere,” says the Haitian-born, Brooklyn-raised Myriam, who has lived in Bed-Stuy, now with her wife and two kids, for more than 20 years. Accordingly, she designed Buy Better Foods as a community space. “I envisioned small classes for customers to learn about different types of foods and ways of cooking. They could purchase the ingredients they learned about or just leave feeling more empowered about the food they're eating.”
This vision emerged from Myriam’s own health journey several years ago, when medical issues prompted her to adopt a low-sodium, low-sugar diet. “I did that for six months, and my health changed drastically,” she says. “But I had to get comfortable with foods I wasn’t familiar with; things like millet, quinoa and bok choy.”
Before pursuing her dream, Myriam focused on learning about the industry, leaving her seven-year management career at Duane Reade to work for two years at a natural food store as an entry-level cashier and vitamin clerk. It took nearly three more years — between finding the right space, construction and “most importantly, God’s timing” — to open her business. But Myriam, 46, finally opened Buy Better Foods on April 2 (in the middle of the pandemic, no less).
While forced to put the learning center component on hold, the fact that the grocery store was an essential business motivated her to push through. “It was a major plus that this is what people needed at this time,” she says of taking the leap. “And I wasn’t going to find out how the business would fare unless I opened my doors.”
“I appreciate every customer who comes into my store, but I’m especially happy that my community is here in this space.”
Brandished on Buy Better Foods’ glassy storefront is the shop’s bold, lime-green-and-orange logo, which includes a slogan: “You Deserve It!” The message is meant to signal to community members that the store is for them.
“It’s about helping the customer be more conscious of what they’re buying and taking the time to invest in themselves,” Myriam says. “When you come into this space, what’s most important is that you don't feel intimidated, and that you feel welcomed. Well taken care of.”
In addition to fresh produce and a variety of bulk dry goods — such as lentils, brown rice, black beans, and granola with hemp and flaxseed — Buy Better Foods offers a thoughtfully curated selection of mostly small, independent natural brands.
“We’re always looking for local, unique stuff here,” Myriam says of the foods stocked on her shelves and in refrigerated cases, including West African soups and sauces by Egunsi Foods, among numerous organic snacks and small-batch pantry staples. “Carrying those more interesting, hard-to-find products helps us stand out from our competitors.”
The market also carries an array of wellness products including supplements, natural body care, indie cosmetics (check out the nail polish from local, Black-owned line Law Beauty Essentials) and herbal tinctures. Among their biggest sellers are the organic loose herbs, from calendula to lemon balm leaf and oatstraw. And for contactless delivery, you can shop the entire inventory online.
“The first question I get from Black customers is: ‘Is this Black-owned?’” says Myriam, who is proud to answer in the affirmative, especially as a longtime Brooklyn resident. Countering the narrative that natural, organic eating is strictly the domain of the affluent or trendy, she says the community has been excited and appreciative of what Buy Better Foods brings to their neighborhood.
“When I first opened, as word of mouth spread, a good number of people from the housing projects across the street came. Every day they were bringing more people and saying, ‘This is the place I told you about,’” Myriam says. “That is so much more rewarding than someone coming in because they thought I carried the latest superfood or whatever. Of course, I appreciate every customer who comes into my store, but I’m especially happy that my community is here in this space and sharing it with one another. It’s a beautiful thing, you know?” —By M. Michelle Derosier
372 Kosciuszko St, Brooklyn, 347-365-9550, buybetterfoods.com
