That's not really anything like a commune. It's basically a grocery store you work at for discounts. I don't doubt it quite beneficial and nice, but really doesn't answer anything about the OPs question.

Park Slope Food Coop is a pretty involved organization and run democratically with a pretty intense culture.. but yes I agree that a commune is a couple orders of magnitude beyond PSFC.

There are similarities however and much to be learned. We even have a cash and labor fund to help others start cooperatives.