Decatur Farmer’s Market Has New Operators, New Vendors. Now It Just Needs More Customers.
Decatur Metro | May 10, 2013
Great piece on the Atlanta Magazine website reporting that the new managers and operators of the Decatur Farmer’s Market, Community Farmer’s Markets, are already bringing in new vendors.
New vendors have already started coming to the market, and today their ranks continue to grow. In addition to loyal, long-time vendors such as Greenleaf Farms, Zocalo Salsas, Stone Mountain Herbs, and Besmaid Garden Essentials, today you’ll find Laughing Rabbit Farm, Mountain Earth Farm, Watsonia Farms, S & J Wood-fired Pizza, Doggy Dogg ATL, and King of Pops. On Saturdays, all the new farms will be back, plus Scharko Farms.
“There will be more vendors coming, especially at the Saturday market,” says Katie Hayes, director of Community Farmers Markets and acting market manager. “The No. 1 thing we wanted to do was get more farmers.” Also scheduled for upcoming Saturday markets: coffee. It’s not grown locally, but it is roasted locally, and it sure makes an early morning shopping trip more pleasant.
As the article notes, now the market just needs more customers to keep those new vendors coming back. Keep up to date on the Decatur Farmer’s Market HERE!
Latest from Decaturish
I wish some space similar to the EAV market was available for the Wednesday market. I find the B of A parking lot to be uninviting.
I wonder if the Decatur Farmers Market is hurt by Decatur’s proximity to YDFM and the several chain supermarkets in the area. EAV and Grant Park don’t have the weeklong shopping options close by that Decatur has.
Eventually the market is reported to be moving to the plaza of the new Beacon Municipal Center, which should give it more room to stretch out and more stability. But that’s still a couple years away.
Wish it was on the square.
Agreed about the location. I thought I read a while back it was thinking of relocating. The EAV market is so nice because it’s not on a paved lot. Will the market continue to be organic? And I’m glad there will be more farmers.
Reposting my comment from over there: One thing that goes unsaid in this article but is a factor that can’t be ignored is the proximity of Your Dekalb Farmers Market and the impact it’s almost certainly had on limiting success of a true locally-driven farmer’s market in Decatur. Two different animals, certainly, but when we have access to such an affordable plethora of organic produce and other food options so close by, it’s really hard for a local farmers market to get its legs under it.
The market is not ‘owned’ by anyone. It is a not for profit market, now ‘managed’ or ‘operated’ by CFM. The reasons why the market is in the B of A parking lot is visibility and parking, and they agreed to host it. Greg Coleson has been working for years with the City to secure a single, and better location. It hasn’t been confirmed but that may be occurring in about two years.
The market was once held on the Square and was not successful for many reasons — it was ahead of its time, there was very little parking for customers and vendor trucks, it was often forgotten about unless you happened to be driving down Ponce at the time, people went to the Square expecting to visit and window shop, not carry around a gallon of milk and bag of produce. There are also conflicts with other events.
CFM and the local CFM board will do a great job at making improvements and growing the market. They are good people with great energy, experience and resources.
Sorry Nicole. I’ve changed the mentions of “owners”.
Thanks to you and Greg for all your efforts over the years! IMO, the market is an essential part of the Decatur experience.
I still wish they could hold it in a more attractive location, like one of the streets leading off the square, blocked for half a day…
great idea. Close Church St betw Ponce/ Sycamore. Or Clairemont north of Ponce.
excellent idea!
They should have it at the “park” on Sycamore. There is parking, walkability, green space- what more could you need.
was wondering how can I get a booth at the Market? My husbands family deals in Honey.