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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] a perspective on market growing
  • Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2011 22:27:34 -0600



Our summer season is almost ended now. Here's one perspective on market
growing.

When you go from growing for home to growing for market, you're starting a
business - literally- with all that goes with it. I suspect many growers are
simply unprepared to think like a business. We know that most self employment
fails for various reasons. For one thing they work hard and growing takes all
their attention. We grow for many reasons, sustainability, profit, the
customer contact, and it's unfortunate but if we don't treat it as a business
we'll soon be out of business and we won't be providing healthy, local food.
It doesn't mean ruthless business tactics, but it does mean controlling costs
and savy marketing.

As for marketing, after all the work of growing you can't just put your stuff
on the table and wait for somebody to buy some. You've got competition, not
just the supermarkets but the other sellers around you. You have to remember
what you're selling is FOOD. And food needs to look appetizing and taste
good. This isn't as simple as it sounds. You can't compete with China-Mart on
price but you can compete on quality. They can get most of what you have at
the store or Whole Paycheck, and you have to give them a reason to shop the
market and buy yours. And it's a social activity, not for those unsure in
dealing with the public, it's being friendly and cheerful and thinking on
your feet. People will want to talk to you about your produce, where you
grow, whether you use pesticides, or what to do with a squash or beet greens.
And then you study the market (or other markets) and watch what people buy.
Some will just grow what they like themselves and that doesn't work. You
figure how to grow what will sell and how to do it better.

Yeah it's challenging but you don't know the rewards until you have people
you don't know crowding around to get what you grow. Nothing like it. Of
couse there's a lot more to it and everybody will see it a little
differently. And no two markets sell just alike and you never know what will
work until you try it. We discovered that displaying garlic braids didn't
sell many but did get people to buy a lot more single garlics, @ $1 ea.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net






  • [Livingontheland] a perspective on market growing, Tradingpost, 10/27/2011

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