Farmers' Markets: Business Incubators and Community Resources

Finding seasonal produce from local farms is one attraction of farmers' markets. Photos by Michelle Calloway.

These days, it seems like you can get almost anything from Amazon or the chain stores that anchor the majority of Northeast Florida’s shopping centers. Yet, despite the convenience of online shopping and proliferation of national chains, over the past 20 years, the number of farmers’ markets in the

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farmers’ Market Directory has steadily risen, from just over 2,400 in 1996 to more than 8,700 in 2022,according to the Farmers Market Coalition (FMC). Over 150,000 farmers, ranchers andagricultural entrepreneurs currently participate in these markets nationwide, with direct-to-consumersales of roughly $1 billion a year.

Which may leave one to wonder: what is it about farmers’ markets that continues to set them apart from their competition in this age of one-click, impersonal shopping?

One visit to a farmers’ market will reveal that it is so much more than just a place to pick up fresh, seasonal produce and artisan food. Not only do markets help bridge the gap between rural and urban communities, but they also offer a plethora of benefits to the farmers and food entrepreneurs who take part in them, the customers who shop at them and the neighborhoods that host them. These benefits include, but are not limited to, the preservation of farmland, increased access to fresh and nutritious food and local economic growth.

What may surprise those who frequent their local farmers’ markets is the extent to which they can also serve as small business incubators and springboards for other opportunities. According to the FMC, farmers’ markets provide a much-needed low-barrier marketplace entry point for new farmers, ranchers and food artisans. A place where they can start small and try out new products.

There are dozens of vendors who have found success at – and beyond – the region’s farmers’ markets. These vendors are as varied as the markets themselves, ranging from startups to award-winning businesses that sometimes have expanded into the retail, wholesale and hospitality realms, primarily via e-commerce and brick and mortar locations. Even if they have grown bigger, they all have one thing in common that keeps them coming back to market week after week – a deep appreciation for the opportunities and community support that farmers’ markets have provided them along the way.

“Farmers’ markets were crucial to our retail business; they helped us refine our product line, and better understand what consumers are looking for,” said Scott Meyer, founder of Congaree and Penn Farm & Mills. “[They] are a great place for consumers to have a one-on-one dialogue with farmers and entrepreneurs, and a great place for us to get to speak directly with the customer. You make friends and you get ideas from one another. It is truly a community.”

THE START-UP

At the start-up end of the vendor spectrum is The Lentil House , which Sharlay Smith launched in the fall of 2017. Smith initially decided to participate in farmers’ markets because they seemed like an affordable way for her to introduce her product and sell it directly to the consumer, with whom she was hoping to connect. So far, this strategy seems to be paying off. “Participating in a farmers’ market has helped my business grow through word of mouth from the neighbors in the community discovering my gourmet snacks there,” Smith said. “The exposure has been great, because people are now looking for The Lentil House in order to get their hands on some fried lentils.” As a result, Smith is planning to participate in other local farmers’ markets.

FROM STANDS TO STORES

The team behind 1748 Bakehouse has also been selling their sweet and savory baked goods and spreads at area farmers’ markets for several years, and now operate a brick and mortar bakery and restaurant in Springfield.

“For us, farmers’ market were the best way to develop and get our products direct to consumers andcreate a following,” said Allison Vaughan, owner of 1748 Bakehouse. “They’ve been a fantastic incubator, of sorts. Markets connect farmers and artisan producers with customers in a way shops often don’t. There is something powerful about seeing who grew your food.”

Vaughan also noted that she continues to sell their products at RAM even after opening her cafe. “We have a loyal customer base that we love serving there, and it’s a great way to get our products in front of people who might not make the trip to a brick and mortar shop.”

In the long run, the economic benefits that farmers’ markets can provide often extend well beyond just the vendors who participate in them. As Elizabeth Grebe, former market manager at RAM can attest, farmers’ markets can also serve as business incubators for neighboring market businesses. “Having another event in town, something weekly to attend is cool, but it’s much more important than that,”she said. “RAM is an incubator for the farmers and the artists who sell here. It’s an economic-driver for the neighborhood. We hear that a lot from other businesses that they have customers who just came from RAM. It’s a place for everyone to enjoy and come together as a community.”

And, this trend does not appear to be unique to RAM and downtown Jacksonville. For example, a 2010 study of the Easton Farmers’ Market in Pennsylvania found that 70% of farmers’ market customers are also shopping at downtown businesses, spending up to an extra $26,000 each week,according to the FMC.

Here's a challenge to the residents of Northeast Florida, which could help plant the seeds for the region’s next wave of farmers’ market success. Take $5 a week and spend it locally. If two thousand consumers diverted $5 from their current non-local weekly spending, we’d be pumping $10,000 [per week] into the local economy.