Since moving to our new building in October, we have seen increased numbers of customers. Considering that we moved in the middle of the year, it was hard to get a real “apples-to-apples” comparison as far as customer traffic was concerned.
With the first quarter of the year in the books, we now have a pretty good way to compare 2024 with 2023. The results show increased customer traffic across all key metrics. The good news is, with our expanded hours and room to operate, we don’t feel overwhelmed. That’s all thanks to the generous donors who made our nifty space at 6608 Dublin Center Dr. possible!
Here’s a look at 2024 versus 2023:
| Q1 2023 | Metric | Q1 2024 | Increase (Decrease) |
| 2,403 | Pantry Visits | 2,932 | 22 percent–March traffic slowed to a modest 5 percent increase |
| 1,094 | Unique Households Served | 1,419 | 29.7 percent |
| 141,357 | Equivalent Meals Distributed | 171,447 | 21.3 percent–roughly in line with the increased number of pantry visits, as would be expected |
In addition to having additional time and space to serve yet another year of double-digit increases in customer foot traffic, we have been fortunate to have an abundant supply of food. Shelf-stable products are almost always in plentiful supply thanks to the Mid-Ohio Food Bank.
For donations like meats, produce, and other perishable products, we rely on the food bank and grocery store and other retail partners to help us keep those cupboards from being bare. Every one of those partners has helped us meet the challenge of our current reality: more people in need than ever.
Next time you shop at Giant Eagle, Kroger, Trader Joe’s, Aldi, Whole Foods, GFS, Big Lots, Costco or other area retailers, thank them for supporting Dublin Food Pantry with their product donations!
And where would we be without our amazing volunteer staff? Wondering how we could serve our customers, that’s where. Leading the charge into our new building and future, our volunteers stepped up with generous financial support and the assurance that they would be able to staff the pantry for more hours and days than we have ever been open before.
We say well done, everyone. And…we’re just getting started!