The Farmer’s Co-Op in Sevier County is a great all around co-op. Co-Operatives like this one are a dying breed. Full of everything you need to run a farm, get a tractor fixed and buy supplies for your animals (big and small), or maybe just come in to find those special items that fit the bill when you are shopping for that special someone, that someone that likes there hats in John Deere green and their work boots with a little camo on the side.
Farmer’s Co-Operatives were established during the early part of the 20th century. The idea is that a co-operative would help farmers by providing the itesm that they needed to run their farms at a cheaper price. Being a part of the co-op back in the day gave you the ability to buy your seeds on credit, get a tractor fixed when it broke down during harvest and a group of people, including the local extension agent to call on when you had questions. The co-op provided literally everything that you needed to keep a farm running, to go from planting to harvest and back again. Bins full of seed, aisles with feed on one side and tack on the other were the norm for people visiting the cop-op. In Sevier County when so many of the people lived an agrarian lifestyle, before the economy changed with the influx of tourism, the co-op kept the people of Sevier County going.
The co-op still benefits the farmers of the area. It provides discounts on the goods they need to keep their family farms going, but it is much more then that as well. The co-op is also a really great place to shop. From farm clothing like Carhart jackets and work pants to boots, the co-op can be a great place for those people that like that country-look when they are buying clothes. And if you have a John Deer collector in your house, they have that merchandise for you as well. And as far as supplies for your pets goes, the co-op might be one of the best pet stores in all of Sevier County.
And, if you need another reason to go to the co-op, think about the history of our country. There are many towns that n longer have a co-op, there are many young people that have never been through the doors of a co-op and would have no idea what one is. Take that young person in your life to the co-op. Let them walk around the store, let them explore a store that was established for a different time in our country’s history. Let them see how a different segment of our society lived and shop, let them shop at the co-op.