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market-farming - RE: [Market-farming] charging what the market will bear

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  • From: "Rick Williams" <mrfarm AT frontiernet.net>
  • To: <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: RE: [Market-farming] charging what the market will bear
  • Date: Wed, 5 Feb 2003 18:53:25 -0600


> -----Original Message-----
> From: market-farming-admin AT lists.ibiblio.org
Del Williams wrote:
> Those folks meant to come in and sell against the
> rest of us
> with their trailers of sweet corn, melons and what not at prices
> we couldn't
> justify selling at retail.

Do you find that their price is all that much lower? We will have some
market farmers coming in for just a week or so with a huge pickup truck load
of corn, pumpkins, etc. and it floods the market. But the rest of the summer
you won't see them.

> If profit isn't a goal, then they ought to set up a stand next to their
> driveway.

Haven't really seen any folks coming in to not make money. When we started,
we tried to closely match others. The one area that we did compete heavily
was with berries. Our goal is to have berries available to sell for as many
markets of the year that we can possibly do so. That is where we make our
produce income. The other stuff does not provide a very good return compared
to the berries. We normally sell quarts of strawberries and pints of
raspberries for $3, or 2 for $5. We noticed that a number of other vendors
changed their prices to match ours except one organic vendor kept their
price the same all the time, no matter what the quantity. We found that 2/3
of the customers would buy the "deal" with strawberries. Raspberries were
much harder, especially our yellow raspberries which are extremely difficult
to sell.

My favorite product to sell are the Sun Gold type of cherry tomatoes since
many customers are put off buy the color and would not think of buying them
(as did I the first time I saw them at a CSA demonstration a couple years
ago). It is so much fun to see them try a sample and change their thinking.
And then keep buying them throughout the season and sometimes coming back
for several quarts at a time. We sell them for $1/pt here. The Juliettes we
could only get $1/qt and that was not easy.

> Organize with your other growers to go over and buy out those hobbyists.
> They'll go home. Donate the produce to the salvation army at market
> value... and then go about your business trying to make a profit.
> And then
> change your rules to keep wholesalers and hobbyists out of your farmers'
> market.

You could really get "killed" if you misjudged the market that day and
bought a pickup truck load that didn't sell:) I have seen plenty of sweet
corn or (insert the product of your choice) leave with the seller.

Our market basically only allows you to sell your own produce. It is your
business what price you ask for it but there are no such thing as wholesale
or retail.

Lets face it, most people who sell at farmer's markets do it primarily for
the enjoyment of doing it, not for the money. That doesn't mean they don't
do it at all for the money, but you have to like doing it. It would not be
possible to define a hobbyist at our market since you have such a wide
spectrum of sellers. The concept of a hobbyist is more in the mind of the
individual, and I would not want anyone else to judge such a thing.

Sincerely,

Rick Williams
Misty Ridge Farm
Direct marketed dairy beef and produce
(also dairy heifers and beef stockers)
Viroqua, WI






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