Yesterday on the blog I said that it might help out the Richfield market or really any market if they had some cooking going on using the products at the market. I unfortunately made it seem like there was nothing going on the Richfield market in terms of cooking. That would be incorrect because there was some hot prep for some brunch items like crepes and omelettes. This is a real asset to a market to have some local cooking going on.
I wanted to elaborate with some brief examples to explain what I was trying to talk about yesterday. While I like the idea of a hot prep station, what can often get lost is the presentation of the process and when you are talking about fresh ingredients it would be great to really educate your consumers about what is going on with the food and why these ingredients are better than what can be found at supermarkets, convenience stores, and even some restaurants. Educating your consumers can help increase the sales of your current patrons and reach out to those who may not normally frequent the market.
The first example that I would like to share is the Dallas Farmer's Market. On their site it says that for 16 years they have been doing "great cooking classes...with renowned local chefs demonstrating their favorite dishes inspired by fresh produce from the market." The classes were around $30 which seems reasonable given that here in the Cities the average date for a night with the Cooks on Crocus Hill is $60. I think this is a real opportunity to highlight items in your market for people and teach them how to use it. While the average consumer at a Farmer's Market probably likes preparing food and is versed in cooking who is not to say that having some cooking classes would not attract a younger less experience audience and maybe even turn more sales with existing customers.
Speaking of attracting younger consumers, I would like to feature Fondy Food Center from Milwaukee. Fondy has tried to fight against the grain that fresh food markets cannot be successful in urban core areas. Part of their success is tied to their cooking classes for young people. Even I wish I would have had something like this close to my house to teach me some things about cooking.
Last, I want to feature the Crescent City Farmer's Market in New Orleans. Crescent City not only has a club for kids called the Marketeers where they can learn about what goes on at the market, but also a Farmer's Market club for senior members called Farmer's Market Bingo, which serves to "inform first time seniors how to make the most of the Market: from health considerations to the rhythm of seasonal eating."
With these examples I hope you can see markets that are trying to reach out to populations that may not necessarily be interested in a Farmer's Market. Every market has the potential to tap into the population it is connected to - it just takes some creativity and curiosity.
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