Farmer's Market Member Dues Survey

[DuckCreekFarms]

I am curious as to how much other Farmer's Markets across the county charge their members for yearly dues and booth rates. Our dues here in Tulsa, OK were $25.00, but the Board recently upped that to $50.00 which I think is rather steep. they also raised the booth fees from $30.00 to $35.00 ( 10 X 12 Foot space). We have a good market, but not that good..

We are open 8am till 11:00am

We only get a space on a city street ( the market takes up two full city blockes)with nothing provided.... except that we have a market manager and paid personnel to put up street barricades early Saturday morning and take them down at 11:30. The board is volunteers, but are appointed by other board members, so they have complete control.

gary
www.duckcreekfarms.com

[Cole_Robbie]

I think mine is $25 for a parking space for one saturday morning, and $175 for the full year. But a lot more vendors want to be full members than get voted in.

My market also does not provide a shade canopy, restrooms, or anything but an empty parking lot and a group insurance policy.

Edit: I asked my grandparents. Last year they raised the daily fee to $35. Full members actually pay $150 for a space, but are forced to have two spaces, so it's $300 a year for members. To apply to be a member, an applicant must have been a daily vendor for five times the previous season.

[dipchip2000]

Gary

I frequently go to Tulsa Farmers Markets and always see many customers and people walking around. I obviously do not how many are actual buyers. I have been to Markets elsewhere that were trashy and very unorganized. I think the price to set-up is a good price for what is there. Yeah, maybe because I am not the one paying the rent. I love the Tulsa Markets.

ron

just my view

[DuckCreekFarms]

Ron

You are right about the people, It gets so crowded that it's hard to navigate the street, but I think most are out to walk the dog....and Socialize......

[LDx4]

Last year we sold at a market on Saturday mornings that charged a flat $25 fee each week for a 10' by 10' space. No yearly dues. This year we moved to another market that charges 8% of the total profit for the day, again no yearly dues. We have a 10' by 20' space and must supply our own pop-up tents and tables.

San Diego County tightly regulates their farmers markets and all farmers have to be certified producers with farm inspections and permits from the county. We must post our permit each time that lists the vegetables we are allowed to sell. Once a year we get re-inspected and can add new vegetables to our list at that time. Occasionally the inspectors do come around and check the farmers.

Our market is one of the smaller ones; there are several markets that are really popular and larger in other areas. Their fees are higher and some markets make the farmers partially prepay and commit to selling for a set number of weeks.

Lyn

[Worth1]

I sent an email off to ours inquiring what their dues are and asking for more general information.
I will post the results as they come in.

Worth

[nancyruhl]

The farmers market I have sold at, just tomato plants, not produce, is very reasonable. $10 for a 10x10 space each week. No other strings for fees. One time registration with no fee. It is well organized with food and produce in one area and crafts in another. It is well attended in the summer because it is in a resort area with lots of cottages. Last year there are so many vendors on the day we were going to sell our plants that we couldn't get in. We got there at the first allowable time in the morning. We learned. I had a whole van full of tomato plants to donate to Greening of Detroit that season.

[biscgolf]

i pay $250 for a full season at one of my markets and $300 at the other. those are for one large parking space and 2 parking spaces respectively. both also require me to carry liability insurance and require a farm inspection to get in in the first place. subsequent inspections generally only occur if you have a complaint about a potential non-producer item.

i also pay $75 for a december-april market when the 2 main ones are down.

[tlintx]

Ours is open year round and sells produce, meat, some prepped foods. $260 fee for three months. Plus $50 starting fee, plus you have to buy a specific and fairly expensive tent.

[Salsacharley]

My immediate area has 5 markets of which I sell at 3. They are on Tuesday PM's, Thurs PM's and Sat AM's. One charges a flat $15 per day, another charges 6% of gross sales with a maximum fee of $10, and the other charges $5 per day. The city requires a raw produce vendor license that costs $15 annually and the sale of any non-food items requires collecting and paying sales tax. Selling live plants requires another license and processed foods require kitchen inspections and other special licenses. Every space provided is 10' x 10' and you supply your own everything. One market even has a huge barn we move in to on days of inclimate weather.

[Wi-sunflower]

The Madison market has a $50 membership fee that they are talking about raising to $100. Then i would have to look up the seasonal fee but it comes out to $20 / market. No vendor is allowed more than just 1 stall that is 16 ft frontage. The depth is about 14-16 ft. This is on the outer part of the sidewalk and since vehicles are longer than 16 ft, not all spots include parking. Generally the seasonals have the parking and the dailies have to unload and find a lot for their vehicle. That's the Saturday market. They have a Wednesday market that is aprox 1/2 price but that's about all it's worth since mid-week markets can be quite iffy.

Hubby goes to the Local West Bend market also on Sat. It's in the street and you get a diagonal parking space that you park crosswise. Because we have something bigger than a pick-up we need 3 spaces to park so we don't have to unload. While this market is nowhere as good as Madison, because we need 3 spaces, it's actually about $50 more / season than Madison even with Madison's membership fee. But since there are so many Sat markets around my area that have split up the customer base and the good farmers, this market is about the best market in my area for Sat other than Madison.

For both markets you supply any and all tables and tents you want for your stand.

Carol

[FarmerShawn]

I sell at a small town market in tax-free New Hampshire. We set up in the town square, a park-like area with a gazebo in the middle for entertainment staging. It's really quite nice, small, and friendly. I pay just $10 per year for membership, and $5 for the Saturday morning, 9-12. First market and last market of the season are free. I get about 15' frontage, with no depth specified, really; it depends on your particular space. Mine is limited by a monument, but I can park my van close to the monument, set up my 10' canopy behind it, and use the back of the van as needed for, well, whatever. The only real rules we have are that we must grow or create whatever we sell ourselves. I'm not going to get rich at such a small market, but it is fun, and, as I said, friendly, with very loyal and enthusiastic customers.

[Wi-sunflower]

I forgot to mention the hours for our markets.

Madison Sat is 6AM to 2 pm and customers will be walking around waiting for us to get set up.
Madison Wed is 8am to 2 pm. They close down a road so we HAVE to be out at 2 when it re-opens or else !!

West Bend is 7:30 to 11 and many think that's too short for what they charge and the hassle of setting up. Many farmers would like another hour or 2 but there are a couple of businesses that would like the market to go away, so we live with what we have.

The market that runs only from 8 to 11 is too short for all the work of hauling and setting up.

Carol

[biscgolf]

both of my weekend markets are 8-1. when i was doing a wednesday market it was 3-7.

6 is too early- i hate setting up in the dark.

[Wi-sunflower]

I know, and I'm not a good morning person. What is worse is it's a 2 hour drive to Madison so we get up at 2:45 so we can get out by 3:30 so we will be there by 5:30 so I don't forfeit my seasonal stand for the day if I don't get there before 6.

But as someone mentioned earlier in this thread, people do like to come early so they can still do other things on the weekend.

Carol