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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Adding a new market day during the week

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  • From: Richard Moyer <ramoyer AT gmail.com>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Adding a new market day during the week
  • Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 16:47:53 -0400

Jay,
My primary market (Abingdon, VA) meets Sat 7-12 and Tues 4-7. From third week in April, we have made 2.25 times as much on Sat than on Tues. BUT, on a per hour basis (including travel time) we earn 1.5 times as much on Sat over Tues. It's much easier to take my younger children along for the shorter afternoon market. See answers to your Qs below.
   
   > 1) Will this take away from our business on Saturday morning?? Example if
   > you sell $100 on Saturday.? Now will you now sell $50 on Wednesday and
   > $50 on Saturday?
   I have customers that cannot make midweek, and others than cannot make Saturday. Not sure what proportion, but they do exist. To better enable a viable local food economy, I want my perishable products available 2x per week. Both to get it picked and into customer homes more than once per week.

   > 2)? What happens when there are only a few vendors who could make this market?? I am one of the larger vendors.? I already go to another town and sell on Wednesday.? I would stop going to that market and stay home.?
   > It would save me 1.5 hours on the road a week and $$$ in gas.

   There have been times when I was the only food vendor on Tues in April, or one of a handful as the season progresses. Customers appreciate the fact that I am making the midweek effort. There also is time to build relationships with the slower midweek pace. We have fewer vendors and customers on Tues because of work commitments, so the customer to vendor ratio evens out compared to Sat. Also, more people on Tues are there to buy food, because we have many on Sat merely out for a morning stroll.

   > 3) Does adding a market day during the year make sense?? Are we just
   > chasing the money?

   Many (most?) of our customers are already buying food more than once per week.  I'd like to be their first choice for midweek purchases. Back to lowering barriers to the local food economy. I try to have ready to eat foods (berries, sugar snaps, meslun) packaged and on display so the family cook can 'grab and go' on the way home.

   Richard Moyer
   Castlewood, VA



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