When it seems like every other company is resisting inclusivity and transparency, there is one grocery store doubling down on its values.

Tucked just behind Penn Avenue in the Point Breeze neighborhood, the East End food co-op has been a staple of the Pittsburgh community for over 40 years, stocking specialty items created by small businesses and locally grown produce all while keeping costs low for their customers.

Equipped with a book section and a café, the small store houses everything from bulk grains to face cream infused with vitamin C. Every product is in adherence to the co-ops strict buying standards meaning only organic products with no artificial colors and limits on preservatives are carried.

Unlike a traditional grocery store, they adhere to a co-operative business model, meaning every member is a part owner. The $100 membership fee is good for a lifetime and saves shoppers 2% on every purchase and a 10% discount quarterly. Additionally, it provides members with the power to elect the co-ops board members.

“One of the slogans that co-ops live by is ‘people over profit,’”Jeff Guerrero, marketing and member services manager, said. “We sold close to $14 million worth of groceries last year and the profit that the business claimed was less than $12,000, so the money is going back into the community.”

Guerrero said they repurpose that money into donations for local causes and sponsorships for community events like Pittsburgh’s Veg Fest.

Another component of giving back to the community that Guerrero said the co-op remains firm on is their commitment to equity and fairness.

“One thing that is a little different about the co-op is our social responsibility,” he said. “While a lot of other places, especially in the past year, [eliminated] DEI, the co-op goes hard.”

A large pride flag hangs in one of the store’s windows facing the street.

“We really try to make sure that we’re doing what’s right for the people that we’re serving,” he said.

The store’s dedication to diversity and inclusion extends past the co-ops customers and to its employees.

“As a non-binary person, the fact that we have a progressive pride flag out front, loud and proud, makes this a very liberating environment to be able to work in,” a store stocker, Aries Zeilo said.

Another important way the co-ops incorporate their values into praxis is only stocking hyper local items.

Sourcing and supplying community made items enables the co-op to keep fruits and vegetables in season.

All the store’s produce comes from regional farms like Tait Farms Foods in Bellefonte Pa., according to Guerrero, who raved about their salad dressing, in particular.

Each section of the store is managed by its own expert, ensuring quality standards are upkept across the range of goods.

“We just got rhubarb,” produce manager Frank Salati said. “We have some local berries coming in and eventually all the stone fruits will be here before we know it and they are just wonderful.”

According to Guerrero, some of the co-op’s products are crafted as locally as Wilkinsburg.

“We have Anar Gourmet Seasonings, for example, who’s a local Indian woman who creates masala kits,” Guerrero said. “It’s not unusual to see the actual people that make the product rolling a shopping cart into the store with cases of their product.”

In addition to grocery items, the co-op also carries ready-made food like pasta salad and seasoned tofu in their café section.

“We make about 95% of everything you see here from scratch,” café supervisor Bryan Mickel said. “For vegetarians, our café is somewhat of a lifeline for Thanksgiving, especially.”

Despite carrying primarily food items, the co-op has an aisle dedicated to cosmetics and personal care products. The section is operated by Lou Ducham, who is a pro at sourcing high caliber goods.

“I’m usually online looking for brands to bring in,” Ducham said. “I love finding cool products to share with people and now I have a job where I get to curate an entire aisle.”

The East End Food Co-op is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day.

A previous version of this story misspelled Jeff Guerrero’s name multiple times, had an incorrect monetary value for how much product the co-op had sold, spelled Bryan Mickel’s name wrong and spelled the two food companies’ brands incorrectly. The Globe sincerely apologizes for these errors.