On May 19, 2018 Fukui Co-operative Society and FamilyMart Co. Ltd, in collaboration with the local government, opened a joint model store "Family Mart + Hearts Kono Kitamae Senshudori Store" in a depopulated area of Kono district of Minami Echizen Town.

This partnership agreement to open the joint store of a co-op supermarket and convenience store is expected to serve as a food desert countermeasure to improve the shopping convenience of the local residents as well as revitalizing the town.

Fukui Co-operative Society has supported many people's lives through mobile sales and shopping agency. In Minami Echizen Town where the new store is opened, the population is declining and aging progressing, the number of grocery retail shops has decreased making it necessary to support the daily living of residents in the area. Therefore, the store has a dining space, a multi-purpose space, and a nursery room next to the sales floor. A corner to provide some administrative services and a bus stop are also adjoined to the store. This integrated store of a co-op supermarket and convenience store function is the first of its kind in the Hokuriku area.

The store, besides providing access to the sale of groceries, perishables, and everyday items, is also expected to become a base of community development giving the local residents a place to exchange each other.