So…I don’t think that my home bakery would be nearly as profitable if it wasn’t due to the education and opportunity I received from the West Virginia Department of Agriculture.
Let me explain.
Hey there! Welcome to Oven and Echoes. I am your host, Renee Brooks and we are writing an article for BAKr.
Today we are talking about why the West Virginia Winter Blues Farmers Market is a great experience for new and experienced West Virginia farmers and producers looking to sell their goods to local West Virginians.
This episode will hopefully be quick because I am practicing to be more concise – with my posts – so that they sound more professional.
So, let’s go into a little bit of backstory about my bakery, right?
So my bakery is called BAKr, I founded it in February of 2024 and at that time, the Winter Blues was going to be my f-f-first ever event. -like- right out of the gate.
I was going…ff-like-f…for apparently…one of the biggest events that you possibly can do. And I didn’t realize how big it was. Even at that time, I was super –unsure– where to start. With anything. Other than I knew I had to bake as many cookies as I could get my hands on.
And this is where I really want to say, thanks to the West Virginia Department of Agriculture. Because they took the time to make…uh…something called the Farmer’s Market Vendor Guide. And this guide is a-pretty much -like- a PDF that you can download for free from the West Virginia Winter Blues…like…page on the West Virginia Department of Agriculture’s website.
And it is very well-written, and it has new vendors in mind, when -like- when they decided to write it, they really were trying to focus on -like- “What’s a new vendor gonna need? What are the basic things that they’re gonna need to know?” And it was a game-changer for me.
I was very unsure of myself at the time and by them producing a document like this-I realized how…how helpful some different agencies can be because once I got ahold of this, it’s filled with everything.
Lemme…Let’s see, I got some notes here of what I personally liked. So this free guide -like- overall…right? If you don’t want to listen to anything else, at least listen to this…
this free guide that they provide covers in-general, how to be a vendor at a farmer’s market, which is wicked!
it covers so much stuff. Like, it covers, what items are and aren’t allowed to be sold – what restrictions are placed on certain goods – what state regulations to follow…for, you know, for different businesses and what best practices are for food safety and label requirements for the foods that you’re trying to sell. But, most importantly
-above all of that other stuff-
this guide is specific to West Virginia vendors for this event. Which is huge, right?
So the West Virginia Department of Agriculture went -out-of-their- way, to create this really nice and concise document for brand-new and experienced -like- food vendors for a farmer’s market, which is amazing! And I have to say that even, for me, it helped me dispel -like- possible misinformation that I could’ve encountered out on the internet. Because, you know, you shouldn’t believe everything you hear on the internet.
That’s not…that’s not true. It’s not…not everything out there is true. Um, but for the most part, it really made it concise for me to understand -like- Cottage Goods laws -like- specifically in West Virginia, which is really, really neat. I really liked it. But I…I couldn’t get around the fact that something like this was free. Like, it blew my mind that they made this document for free, which is great-
because having free education is something that I’m really behind. Like, I’m really for…people…being able to get information for free. Because how can you better yourself, if you don’t have an education? Right?
An education is great because -like- our brains can suck up all of this info and -like- and I gotta say that when I have this manual, because I get kind of anxious and I like reading through -like- documentation. They made it so good and I was able to absorb so much from this document and I just kind of keep it with me. It’s…it’s in my documents that I have here at home because it’s full of good info for when I’m actually doing vendor events as BAKr. I really like it.
So if you’re interested you can get a copy of this Farmers Market Vendor Guide here at https://agriculture.wv.gov/ag-business/winter-blues-farmers-market/ THEN click on the link for the Farmers Market Vendor Guide.
But (heh) that all being said and done, I feel that the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, genuinely cares about West Virginia farmers and West Virginia citizens. Because this document has so much information on -like- FOR vendors – on how to keep their food stuffs safe-for-the-public.
The fact that they go out of their way to make something that’s so detailed and concise, and it has all the stuff that you would need. And it covers such a huge breadth of information, right? This covers stuff that isn’t even just for Bakeries! It covers stuff for jams, for jellies, for honey, for…you name it, -like- it goes really far out there. But as-a-whole, I just appreciate the fact that they put so much time and care into making that
because – having a mis-informed vendor…could then lead to someone jeopardizing someone else’s health from -like- making a food that –technically has botulism– or –whatever it is-, because they didn’t…prepare it correctly. =(
So, that’s…that’s a big TO-DO. That’s a big thing that I like about this. You know, the whole event, the West Virginia Winter Blues Farmers Market, and the West Virginia Department of Aga-Agriculture.
And I’m going to say this right now, it’s going to look to -like- search engines that -like- I’m just -like- BUZZWORD, buzzword, BUZZWORD, buzzword! But that’s the problem though -is that- I don’t know other ways to mention, either the event itself, or just -like- “who they are” without saying it a whole bunch? -like- I’m still learning.
So whatever, uh, let…that’s a story for another time.
So now…the other thing that I want to mention is just more about the event itself, right? So we kind of went over just now -like- the manual or it’s kind of like a guide that has just tons of helpful information in it.
But the other thing is just the event itself, right? -like- now only do they try and educate people but this event is very much geared towards, not only citizens, but vendors during their most, I guess, -like- troubleD-time throughout the year? So-this event happens during Winter around -like- March, right? -like- late February, early March. And this is important because for a lot of these smaller producers, smaller farms. If they have anything at all that they can sell…this -like- during the winter months is when most businesses have a rough time because it sucks to go outside. It’s cold.
All right, you know, -like- I can stand -like- sweating in the summer but then -like- I just…it’s hard being outside when it’s cold because it’s dangerous…it’s more dangerous. I feel -like- anyway. -.-
So they…the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, schedules this event -like- late March. (Not Said, but should have said February)
It’s already going to start helping people who aren’t making, you know, maybe…who didn’t make their sales this year, or, you know, they didn’t even make enough money that they were hoping for. So this just gives another opportunity for them to actually make money.
And the other thing too, is that the Department of Agriculture organizes this whole event and they have been doing this since 2008, right? And this year they had roughly -like- 160 vendors.
In one space.
It was a lot.
With all of these vendors, you got to have a place for them to set up, so they Organized with the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center, which it’s, that’s a huge boon. Because it’s a huge enclosed space for vendors to be able to sell all their stuff and have enough room to bring a lot of product.
But there’s also more room for customers to kind of -like- navigate between the booths. -like- It’s…it’s quite a lot of room! And it’s also free to the public! So then anybody in West Virginia can go to this event and just kind of explore…local, West Virginia farmers and producers. And it also gets people out of the cold! Because it’s INDOORS -like- that’s a HUUUGE thing, right?
For all of those different aspects -that- is one of the things that helped me out for my first time ever with my bakery. Because -like- when I was wanting to start this – I had no idea what I was doing…right? -like- I knew how to bake and I wanted to SELL what I baked but I didn’t have -like- an avenue yet.
-like-
I wasn’t exactly sure…how I was going to get these cookies that I was making into the hands of the people! The people who want the cookies…
So I actually heard about the West Virginia Winter Blues Farmers Market from a friend, and I applied to be a vendor. And, like, and I had applied -like- LATE. I DID-NOT think I was gonna be able to get in AT-ALL to be a vendor, but as luck would have it, -like- they had space and they’re -like- “Hey, you’re gonna be one of the last few bakeries that we put in here…so you know…as long as you got your stuff…you’re good to go.”
I have to say though that they, the…the employees and other volunteers that do anything for the West Virginia Winter Blues Farmer…Farmers Market. And I’m specifically talking about the West Virginia Department of Agriculture employees that helps set this up because they helped me go from having -like- very little confidence and -like- understanding what I was doing, I’m -like- this is a huge event -like- they got me from having zero
confidence to making me feel SUPER CONFIDENT with EVERYTHING I was doing because not only do they provide that Guide that I keep harping back to -because I just love the sound of harps- You know…bing-bom-bing.
They have to ask you what you’re selling and it makes complete sense because then depending on what you’re selling it then tells them different avenues that they have to kind of -like- walk you down.
-like-
If you’re having baked goods, -like- are you using buttercream icing? Because that’s not, okay. You can’t use a butter-based icing because it’s not shelf-stable. Same thing with -like- a cream cheese icing, right? -like- it’s not shelf stable, it has to be kept refrigerated in order for it to be safe all-day-long for you to be able to sell stuff.
But they also ask you, “What your food labels look like?” “Are your food labels meeting the requirements?” and then -like- you can actually SEND THEM a version of your label and say, “This is what my labels look like…can you help me tweak it?” or -like- “You know…”Is it missing anything?” and they will guide you through -like- what it’s missing, which is incredible. So that you don’t actually get in trouble with -like- state government because you don’t want that. You don’t want to get in trouble with the Feds. Don’t want to get in trouble with the State…it’s not fun, right?
In addition, they called me and asked me these questions, right? But then, before the event itself, they also do a blanket webinar that they use to help educate all of the vendors about the event. They allow you to ask questions, -like- they show you -so-much-stuff-. They pretty much like, take all of the information that they have for the event itself and cram it into a video that you then can go back and watch later -like- they will give you a link so you can go back and see it again and that’s super handy because we all know that we’re not going to remember everything and it’s just nice to be able to kind of go back and -like- revisit stuff that you may have missed.
And just the amount of people -like- the people in that division, in that department and also -like- any volunteers that they get, those are the nicest people! -like- I really want to slam my table but I know it’s gonna make my microphone shake…
But the volunteers that they have are great -like- last year and this year. -like- It’s just fantastic. Because even -like- this year, they were able to figure out -like- where I was as far as a booth goes And then they also had people that would actually help bring the stuff -like- As long as you loaded it onto a cart, they would help bring it to your booth -like- once they figure it out where you were and that’s Super-Handy! Because then -like- even for me, I’m a one-person operation right? I make 30 different types of cookies right now, all-by-myself -like- I do like getting help but I don’t -like- I feel like a burden if I go through and I if I ask anybody for help because -like- I imagine that with how complicated even -my-life- is that I am forcing -like- I feel bad for forcing someone else to take time away from their life and their goals and their stuff to help me with my stuff because I want to be -like- self-sufficient. But that’s also another story for another time.
As I’ve been a vendor -like- one of the other troublesome things with vendoring is remembering to bring your table and remembering to bring your chair and they provide -like- for the event. -like- Once you pay your vendor-fee, they provide a table and two chairs which is fantastic because it allows you to automatically plan for -like- “well I’m actually gonna have three people at my table, so I need my own chair” or sometimes they can -provide- another chair.
Um you can also order more tables -like- it’s huge. They’re SO accommodating with everything that they do…With this event. -like- they figure out so much about your event to make sure that you’re in the right spot. You know, that you’re not being crowded up with a whole bunch of Bakers. It’s a fantastic event, right? And now I’m kind of rambling. So let’s kind of get back into the bullit points here. But two more things. So I also really liked the…the ability to cross-sell between the vendors during -like- the vendor hour.
So then before the event actually starts for the public…as a vendor, you can actually go around for -like- about an hour…and shop…at the other vendors. This helps you build -like- business connections, it helps you interact with the different vendors, -like- it’s…it’s really nice because you get to learn like, what your neighbors are selling, you get to learn their story.
That’s possibly one of my favorite things about this whole process of vendoring – is getting to meet these different people that, -you know- they’re doing something oh-so-similar to me, right? We’re both selling things at a farmer’s market – last year, one of the favorite vendors that I met, was the Terra Fate Plant Nursery in Huntington, right? And they are super nice! Super, super nice people. And I love them to the moon and back. I think that they have a really nice thing going on and they even invited me to their opening…
Right?! Because they were actually going to open their storefront for the first time which is -like- a big deal for a business. -like- That was a massive deal for that business and I made new friends at last year’s event and I made new friends at this year’s event -like- it’s…it’s incredible and I think that’s…that’s my favorite thing, is just making the connections either with the different vendors that you’re around or if you get the chance to make a connection with the customer because it’s it’s a local West Virginian! You know you’re actually meeting people in your community. You’re getting your business name out there and it just feels…feels cozy. It feels very much in the community. It feels together and I…I like that – it feels nice.
Ah, but okay. Then the last thing, right? The last thing that I really -like- about this event is at the end of the event. They… -like- the Department of Agriculture gives you a questionnaire. And this questionnaire kind of goes over the event as a whole -like- what you thought about the event, what worked and what didn’t. -like- You know, in general, how much did you make, you know, based on cards and cash and everything. And it’s really helpful because it kind of makes you immediately reflect on the event. And I wish that other event coordinators would do something -like- the Department of Agriculture is doing because then as a vendor myself, it makes me think like, “Was this a good event for me?”, “Did I actually make the money that I was hoping?” -like- “Did I bring the wrong stuff?” “Did it not sell very well?”
And it also helps the Department of Agriculture know if they put up a good event -like- did they have any issues that caused problems for the vendors? Or did they neglect something that they normally did in previous years that they didn’t do this year, that caused issues? It’s really good because then -like- it helps…it helps both sides. Both the people who want to sell the product and also the Department of Agriculture willing to put their time and effort to organize an event like this.
So I really want to thank -like- and I know this kind of feels -like- I’m brown nosing…um or whatever but genuinely uh because I know I keep saying it, but I really want to thank the Department of Agriculture for setting this event up because it helped me prepare from the beginning of when I heard about the event and until after I had gone home. Right? It…-like-…they give you so much information that it makes you feel very confident in what you’re about to do and what’s going to happen and with that confidence -like- I was severely lacking because it was my first-ever-event.
I’m just very grateful for the support that they put into this event and the effort that they put into it, because seeing all of these different vendors -like- try their hardest to sell these different goods. It helps me grow as a business owner to learn how to operate my business safely and figure out the best practices. And it’s…it just means a lot.
But yeah, I’ve kind of gone over some of the other things that I had written down…for why I -like- the event so much, which is really great.
But I think as a whole to kind of wrap this up with a nice little bow. The biggest thing about this event is it helps vendors during a time when they are the most vulnerable, it helps small businesses when they’re vulnerable and it gives a very easy avenue for all of the citizens who want to participate in this event -like- they get to come in for free and they get to shop at all of these local vendors of people in West Virginia who are working hard to provide something…unique to their communities and to their friends.
And I really hope that going forward, the Department of Agriculture continues to support the West Virginia Winter Blues Farmers Market because -like- from me…from the voice of just one vendor it’s genuinely helped my business and I really hope it continues to grow year after year.
So I also hope that you, The Listener, are also having a good day and I hope that this message finds you well.
Have a great day! Bye! =)