i have been having a good year but this always depends on the growing season and the weather more than anything else.
customers have been spending the same or more as they have in the past. but i sell in an upscale (wealthy) area.

Randy - thanks for the reponse. Guess I just paniced as last week we collected more $50's than we've ever experienced before. Maybe the ATM's are now handing out 50's instead of 20's or something.
This has been a great market year for us too, but pennies freaked me out! Glad your year's been good -
Robbins

I thought that the gas prices would separate financial classes more than other years but it seems that all classes will still spend lots on flowers and complain about produce prices (while holding expensive flowers). Overall it seems that individuals are determined to purchase the things that they cherish even under financial stress.

My farmers market sales have been better than last, but not my farmstand sales except for potted perennials that did well in the early season. Sometimes I think being in a nearby farmers market draws your customers there instead of continuing to come to the stand. But then, who can figure out customers? Not me! Ann

Do not sell at local farmers' market (will next year) but shop there often and have actually seen lines of customers at some booths. Not seen this in the past. Seems as those who sell organic do well. (This is home to a small liberal arts college.) I have shopped more than in the past. Work with others who sell at farmers' markets and they have had good seasons.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rural Life 2.0

Hi Robbins,

Sorry to not have responded to this sooner, but I was too depressed...not really, well...sorta! Regardless of my metal state, this was a very disappointing year, but mostly due to our own mistakes. We got in over our heads by attempting to do more markets than we could handle very early in the season (while we were still preparing new beds). Some of those markets were brand new...hence, very low traffic and sales. Also we tried too many new crops, and too much of the labor intensive crops. To top it off we had the wettest spring on record followed by the driest September. So that doesn't really get to the heart of your question, but it feels good to finally admit that we failed and came up very short of our goals this year. I am trying to find the desire to try it again next year.

The one established market that we attend had more vendors and more traffic, and therefore most vendors had a little better year than last. We did have a few folks count out change to pay, and we had our first bounced check as well. But overall, people seemed to be willing to pay a premium for high quality locally grown produce.

Patty

P.S. One of the highlights of our garden this year was Daniels tomatoes! We didn't have many, but after one week we had customers come back asking for them by name...including the market coordinator's wife! (I mention this here because Robbins was the seed source.)

Diversification seems to be the key to having a successful year. The market will provide a means for people to find your goods on a regular basis if they like what you have. The main problem this year for many vendors is having enough goods to make it work. With a drought in the northeast, our regular "base" crops like sweet corn, beans, potatoes, peppers and many of the more desirable herbs like basil and cilantro were in short supply and of poorer quality. Somehow other crops like blueberries, red raspberries and greenhouse grown tomatoes and cucumbers filled in the gap for us. Whereas last year I didn't sell a single apple, this year I'll probably pick 150 bu. of apples and haven't sold one ear of corn from 4 acres planted.

I'm wondering if our past records would reveal some type of cyclical pattern (maybe different for all of us) that every few years a crop that we had written off jumps back to the front of the line as a money maker. And how many bad years with a regular staple crop (like sw.corn) do I need before I decide its not for me? Any others have that same history? If it weren't for a few crops picking up the slack, every year could be a potential disaster.

This year was a little bit better than last year. We sell perennials and always do well. People seemed very willing to buy. We've got a lot of established customers who we've gotten close to and feel that the market has become an incredible social exchange for everyone who attends. We placed a seating area this year for those customers wanting to eat/drink at the market with friends. Also, many new vendors joined. Our number one plant is lucky bamboo, our only houseplant. And we bought half our groceries, and almost all our veg at the market this year. The baking was unbelievable. Two weeks ago was Canadian Thanksgiving and the range of products available were unbelievable and people bought in droves to prepare to spend the entire weekend celebrating the feast before us by gorging on fresh produce pumpkin crunch, and leek loafs. Yum!

Our Market celebrated 29 years in our area.
This year started out with bad news, we had to move. I as manager searched out several places to put the makret. One place we were thinking of called me before I could call them and asked us to come. We were overwhelmed, the location is not on the main drag but it has many socal agencies that most people know about. The move was positive. We lost two vendors, one we wanted to get rid of the other had a better market to try out. Latter in the season we got two more good vendors and the season was going strong.
As for volume, well with some advertising we increased sales.
We are planning on offering Sponsor membership to those who wish to help support our market.
We also started another market in our county and it was a great success. Another market is planned to start next year.
Our group is a non profit corporation and I think we are doing better because we are well organized.
Take care and good luck next season.
Tom in Northeast Ohio

As a whole, local markets were up substanially this year. For me - they were pretty good when we made it. Frustrating.

We got hailed out on June 9th. I shouldn't complain - first time for serious damage in 9 yrs. Our area is prone to hail, but usually, we don't have problems being so close to the foothills. It was at the end of a good work day - nice & focused, lots accomplished. Then bam! 13 minutes of golfball sized hail, shattered gardens, trashed windshield on the truck.....It's usually the growers 10+ miles east who really have to deal w/ it. Problem is, it just put me in such a foul mood that it took almost 2 weeks to get everything replanted. So, everything was late.

Following that, no precip until mid Sept; record high's (95+ for weeks) and wind. Made adequate watering tough.

Overall - people seem to genuinely being catching on to shopping at market. We have an awesome, high energy manager this year at one market that has made a world of difference.

Whole Foods has opened here & people seem willing to pay more for produce after shopping there.

We sell a lot of plants, too & those sales have gone well. Always amazes me how well rhubarb sells in my area. Plants & pulled both. I think we sold well over 100 gal. sized plants at $10.00 each and about 25 - 30 lbs. fresh rhubarb each market at $2.50/lb.

Basil is a good seller too - can't keep up w/ the demand.

We had a great first year at market! Learned a lot, our stand realy imoroved over the season. I will implament what I learned this year, plan a little better and certainly be back next year.

Hadn't looked here for awhile - sounds like markets were across the board this year. Ours turned out to be the best year ever for us - about a 20% increase from last year. Top end quality and great abundance - even through drought and amazing heat - kept our customers coming. Plant sales were a little slower - seems everyone and his granny are now selling heirloom tomato plants, but veggies kept us going all summer. It is so good knowing we really can make a living doing this!
Patty - keep going - it'll even out and you'll find your way. I know at this time of year it's like - I never want to see another vegetable again - but give it a few weeks and you'll be planning for an even bigger and better next year. I'm so glad the Daniels tomatoes were a hit for you! Send your address off forum and I'll send some others that do well for us.
Now's the time to get out catalogs and sit down with them and any chefs you work with to line out their wants for next year. If you have Whole Foods or other stores like that approach them about buying your stuff. If possible - get certified organic - it really expands your markets.
Yep - I'm pooped. The plastic needs to be lifted, more cover crops planted, shade cloth drug off and put away, but it was a great year and I'm feeling really lucky that this is what we get to do for a living!

Our sales were down this year but I can attribute that to two different things. The amount of resellers this year was unbelievable and they can sell for so much less than a true grower...they did great. The market started a Sunday satellite market on the outskirts of town and it kept many of those customers from traveling downtown on a Saturday. The farmers that did not participate in the Sunday market lost out on many sales. Those of us that had to sell on Sunday just to make the same amount as we did a year ago selling one day were forced to pay double the fees and double the gas so in the long run it cost us more money this year.

We were beginning to think it was our stuff until we talked to other farmers. It's sad when a small farmer who grows everything is down by $3000 and a large farmer who travels to the auctions or purchases value added items to sell sees his/her sales go up by 40%.

We are going to spend the winter rethinking our involvement in a market that we have been making a living selling at for 9 years. :(

We did well. I think next year will be better. This is why.

Food prices at our local grocrey stores were up, so we were equal or less then them. Previous summers we were often a little higher then the prices at the grocrey stores.

High fuel prices (especially diesel which has not gone down yet (tractors, semis, ect) should keep food prices up at the grocrey store which will make markets more and more attractive to more then just the "foodies."