Market Farming

[Liannan88 AT aol.com]

Mike,

I am also in the process of trying to create a farmer's market.  I set up on Saturdays at our local feed store & sell from their parking lot.  They would welcome other vendors & so would I.  I really dreaded it the first time I did it.  It was a little scary breaking new ground like that, but after I made my first sale, I was hooked.  Now I look forward to Saturdays more than just about anything.

One of the most important things I've learned is not to make any guarantees to ANYONE that you will be there every week.  Even with the best of intentions, there may be weeks when you just don't have anything worthwhile to offer.  While this may seem bad for business, it's better than offering second-rate or resale items.

Also, customers can be fickle.  Right off the bat, I had several repeat customers, but the first time there was a community festivity, my customers were at the fair & rodeo, & forgot all about me. This can be a hard blow if you're not expecting it.  If I had known it would happen, I could've set up on a different day or gotten a booth at the fair.

And, when you're inviting people to join you in your enterprise, be really careful that you don't depend on them ENTIRELY for any degree of success in your business.  They can no more predict a bad weather season or other adverse conditions than you can.  There is a farmer's market in a nearby town that has the population to support it, but the lady that has been trying to keep it going has been at it for several years, & still doesn't have enough vendors to have someone there twice a week throughout the entire season.  Of course, the customers complain that there are never any vendors there, but these things take time.  I personally feel that it's better to start slowly & grow into your business than wake up one day and feel owned by it.  That's what the city job is for!

-Maridian Carlton
Bridgeport, TX