Looking for Gifts in St. Paul

Hello Readers,

       With Ryan out of town I explored alone the St. Paul Lowertown Market. While it was cloudy and dreary outside the market this morning, it was vibrant inside with people brimming about inspecting vegetables, striking up conversations, and being drawn to different attraction points in the market. In this first post about the St. Paul Lowertown Market I wanted to share what attracted me to look, stop, and eventually buy.

      I walked the market at least three times. On the first round I just wanted to see what was hot. Where people were congregating. The place that labeled itself as the "world's coldest spring water" was also the place to get coffee. I heard several people as I ushered in say "I have to get some coffee before we walk around." I think other points that made this location especially good was its location, quick service, and fun atmosphere. It was generally a place that seem fun to be around.

    Another point that attracted me was good signage. Some people put their signage on the sides of their trucks which was good but the most effective for me were those that put the sign right behind their stand. The two products I ended up buying came from retailers that had signs for their business right behind them. In addition, I wanted good labeling on the items because this week I was not going to be consuming the goods myself but handing them off as gifts. I wanted to whomever I gave them to form a relationship with the craftsperson.

I first stopped at the stand for the White Bear Soap Company because of the sign behind the stand, the general helpfulness of the associate, and the unique nature of the soap. I have to be honest the first thing that really attracted to the stand was the bar shampoo because you so rarely see different scents for bar shampoo. When I approached the woman I took a look at her products as she was helping another customer. I found a uniquely purple bar for my girlfriend and then asked her if she could recommend another one for me. We settled on a lavendar bar. When we were done with the transaction she handed me a loyalty card so that I may stop by at a later time. The card had the craftswoman's number and e-mail on the back. Great way to build a relationship with her customers. The whole experience was quality from beginning to end and only cost me $5. Later in the week I will do a blog posting just on building loyalty at farmers markets.

Second, I stopped at the original Tarte Tatin because it had the full package of marketing with a sign behind the stand, flyers, and well labeled products. It was especially nice that you could buy boxes that had three tartes bundled for $10. I bought a box. The packaging even led me to a website so that I could learn more about the company. - http://www.theoriginaltartetatin.com/. Again I was pleased with my experience all the way through. I hope when I give the box to Ryan when he returns I hope he enjoys a Tarte.

   I gave myself a budget of $15 otherwise I would have gone after some asparagas, a donut, or some flowers. On my budget I could not go far, but it was enough to have a great morning at the market. Look forward to some more posts this week about my experience at the market and other odds and ends to get you acquainted with us.

   We would love to hear comments from you about our postings and please offer any suggestions of where we should go or what should look for when we get there. Be sure to share this blog with your friends and family.

~Joe

P.S. We have already had one request for a guest posting. If you would like to guest post about what you are seeing at your local farmer's market please e-mail us at drivingforfreshness@gmail.com.